U.S. Spending Billions to Stop Iraq IEDs
The United States is pouring billions more dollars and fresh platoons of experts into its campaign to “defeat IEDs,” the roadside bombs President Bush describes as threat No. 1 to Iraq’s future. The American military even plans to build special, more defensible highways here, in its frustrating standoff with the makeshift munitions — “improvised explosive devices” — that Iraqi insurgents field by the hundreds to hobble U.S. road movements in the 3-year-old conflict. Out on those risky roads, and back at the Pentagon, few believe that even the most advanced technology will eliminate the threat. Full Story