Afghanistan War IEDs Cause Surge In Double Amputees Among U.S. War Wounded

[tekisui]

Source: Huffington Post

American soldiers and Marines walking combat patrols in Afghanistan have suffered a surge of gruesome injuries, losing one or both legs and often their genitals to crude homemade bombs Taliban insurgents bury in dirt roads and pathways.

In some cases, American military surgeons tell The Huffington Post, these traumatic amputations occur so close to soldiers' hips that it is difficult to fit prosthetic legs, severely limiting the patients' future mobility and rehabilitation. In addition, the loss of sexual function for formerly healthy young men in their early 20s causes severe anxiety and depression and can wreck new marriages.

The latest wave of severe injuries comes after Gen. David Petraeus ordered U.S. troops in Afghanistan last year to get out of their protective armored vehicles and start walking. "Patrol on foot whenever possible and engage the population," he directed in guidance to his troops last August.

(snip)

Improvised explosive device (IED) attacks against dismounted troops have skyrocketed, from five in April 2009 to 210 in April 2010 to 376 this past April, according to data gathered and analyzed by the Pentagon's counter-IED agency, the Joint IED Defeat Organization. JIEDDO counts "attacks" as IEDs detected before they explode, ones that detonate without causing casualties and ones that kill and maim.

more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/30/afghanistan-casualties_n_868034.html

[The Midway Rebel]

1. kicked and recc'd

To keep this ugly un-ending war in our faces till we tire of it and bring our troops home.