Value of Pursuit Commandos

The American armies in Afghanistan and Iraq are now under the command of dumbed-down conventional anti special operations generals. These generals have reverted to methods used during the Vietnam War, which failed even then. All troops are kept hunkered down in fortified camps, from which they sally on occasional offensive forays. That is why the enemy now controls 70% of Iraq.

If Special Operations Generals were in charge, they would form fast-moving foot-mobile and, in some cases, APC-mobile light infantry pursuit companies. These companies would begin by using trackers to pick up the trail of enemy units. They would then pursue those units relentlessly until they killed them. Such pursuit commando companies composed of 120 men armed with 10 light machine guns, 10 RPGs, 3 light mortars, 6 snipers, with all heavy gear on pack mules or stored in vehicles, would take back Iraq from the enemy. At least 30 such pursuit commando companies should be prowling Iraq at any given time.

Good generals study history. If we had any professional conventional generals, they would have learned about how the French used Pursuit Commandos to defeat Muslim terrorists in Algeria in the late 1950s.

Below is an excerpt from the QuikManeuvers book, Pursuit Commandos.


French General "Challe formed special company-sized units called Commandoes De Chase (Pursuit Commandos) in 1959. Those companies were either totally French or, in most cases, mixed French/Muslim units. Many of the Muslims pursuit commandos were former FLN members.

The basic tactic for all the French operations was for the Commandoes De Chase to be assigned a guerilla gang and hunt for it non-stop. French Pursuit Commandos were to pursue the targeted enemy terrorists regardless of where it went. Once the Pursuit Commandos had tracked down the gang and pinned it, the General Reserve would be called in to finish off the kill. Once the gang had been destroyed, the Commando De Chase would be assigned a new gang in the area and the hunt would start all over again.

What separated the pursuit commando hunts from the former technique of the ratissage is that the French did not leave the area after destroying the gang. Quadrillage in the newly liberated area could then focus on training local self-defense forces and in destroying the FLN grass roots organizations in the village."



Why have America’s conventional generals in Iraq ignored such wisdom?