Tuesday, November 08, 2005

The Ramrod

The "voiture bélier" has made a distinguished appearance during this French Intifada and is being used regularly during the more heavy operations carried out by the rioters. A "voiture bélier" is a vehicle with one or several beams fixed to it so it can be used to smash a wall, gate, or barrier of any kind. Hardly the kind of technique that would be spontaneously used by disenfranchised youth, the "voiture bélier" is the one of the tools of choice used by the armed robbery gangs that operate in Paris' northern suburbs (the same gangs that kickback funding to various Jihad groups around the world) . They have been used efficiently and with spectacular effect to rob upscale Paris jewelery shops in broad daylight. The fact that they are being used regularly by rioters (the rioting started in Paris' northern suburbs) is a good indication about which groups are participating in the current mix of urban guerilla activity.

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