Yes, the blitz of Dhaka – which killed 20 hostages , including nine Italian – seems driven roughly. But when the assault took almost all Western hostages were already dead: the photos of tortured bodies were raised from hours of web propaganda of the Islamic state.
In front of the video of the raid, any Western expert is ready to deploy critical. First of all the time: today the SWAT always strike at night. Because they are used to fight the darkness, using special viewers, which terrorists usually do not know how to do. Before the raid started at the dawn of technological innovation: it was believed that at that time there was enough light to distinguish between “good and bad”, between attackers and hostages, but at the same time the penumbra would facilitate the approach to the target. Instead the troops of Dakka moved at 7.40, with the now broad daylight and suicide bombers are able to react.
However, Bangladesh has no “special forces”: no departments trained to intervene in similar situations . It is a poor country, with an ill-equipped army that often makes available UN to rack up better wages. But even a power like India before the onslaught of Mumbai realized not even have a team prepared for the release of hostages.
The Thunderbolt operation, ie lightning, the name emphatic chosen by the authorities of Dhaka, it was an infantry attack, not a police action: they acted as if they had to conquer a position, not to ensure the lives of prisoners. Large and noisy armored vehicles broke down the fence, presumably to create a diversion, while at the other end a commandos has jumped out of the lake. But the terrorists were ready, dressed in Western clothes, and confused among the hostages – it is believed that those still alive were mostly local and very few foreigners – in a glass roof that allowed to control the situation of almost 360 degrees.
the jihadist group was armed with grenades, guns and small model Kalashnikov AK22: are the preferred version by guerrillas of India and Bangladesh, because very short and even easier to use than the ubiquitous AK-47s. More had placed gas cylinders in front of the door, even if it does not seem to be fitted with triggers to detonate them.
The raid has become a long shootout with terrorists who continued to return fire for over ten minutes. The raiders throw stun grenades at random, moving in a clumsy imitation of Western commandos. It was inevitable that ended in a massacre.
The operation was not agreed with our government. But it is nothing new. Even the British allies would not warned before unleashing the blitz of 2012 in Nigeria that killed an Italian hostage and one English. And even if the authorities in Dhaka had consulted us, what would change? Admitted that some of our compatriots were alive, there would have been no time to send a team of Italian raiders in the area, considered among the best in the world.
Perhaps the massacre in Bangladesh could serve as reflection to the West to avoid further such incidents. It would be important that was created an international network of intervention modules arranged so as to act in different areas of the planet. The risk that there are new attacks on businessmen, tourists, workers of NGOs is concrete. And now in the ranks of NATO countries there are thousands of soldiers and officers with the rank of special force , trained and equipped to deal with such threats. It would be enough to set up of principals, with a twin-engine jet type Falcon trust in rotation teams from each nation: the model used in Afghanistan to manage the departments of commandos , to which Italians have contributed to the Task Force 45.
it is technically not difficult: the basics – American, French, British and other allies – we are a little ‘everywhere. From Djibouti to Kabul, from Mali to Baherein, from Singapore to Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean: a network that allows you to get anywhere with 4-6 hour flight. However, we should define the rules of engagement and international agreements to allow operations in case of need. But it is a utopian scenario, because no country is willing to give up sovereignty in the management of these crises.
It’s the usual problem: while terrorism is now globalized, the response too often continues to close in national interest boundaries.
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