A Pentagon audit has found that the US Defense Department failed to take proper measures to save the lives of troops against roadside bombs. An internal Pentagon investigation said in its new report that the Marine Corps and the other military branches were aware of the threat posed by roadside bombs and mines years before insurgent actions began in Iraq.
The Pentagon carried out the audit after the Marine Corps was criticized for setting aside an urgent request from field commanders in 2005 for Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) armored vehicles.
"DoD (Department of Defense) was aware of the threat posed by mines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in low-intensity conflicts and of the availability of mine-resistant vehicles years before insurgent actions began in Iraq in 2003," the audit found. "Yet DoD did not develop requirements for, fund, or acquire MRAP-type vehicles for low-intensity conflicts that involved mines and IEDs," a summary of the report said.
Hundreds of US troops have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan because commanders delayed provision of blast-resistant vehicles. |