The MOAB or the Ordinance Blast bomb was used for the first time in East afghanistan. The use of the bomb makes good military sense. The aim in any war is to win it, and in case the enemy has the advantage of terrain and logistics this is the best way. The bomb was exploded after getting the concurrence of the Afghan president Ashraf Ghani. It has had a devastating effect. Apart from about 100 ISIS fighters killed the bomb set off pressure lines and sealed many tunnels and caves used by The Isis.
The MOAB and its use
The MOAB (mother of all bombs) is a satellite-guided conventionàl bomb.
It's the largest bomb ever used. There is one in the Russian inventory, but it is not used in battle. The MOAB costs 15 million dollars, and the USA has about 15 of them. It is worth examining whether the use of this weapon is a viable method in a war of attrition. From the look of things the use of this weapon against an enemy hiding in a maze of tunnels and bunkers is justified. The ISIS and Taliban fighters had holed up in the arid mountains of East Afghanistan. There they had constructed a maze of underground tunnels and arms store rooms in caves. To capture such an area is extremely difficult and would have led to hundreds or even thousands of casualties.
Effectiveness
How to wipe out such an intricate maze deep inside towering high mountains?
The US Central Command commander, General Nicholson, a respected soldier took the right decision to use this bomb. The bomb can work in such inhospitable conditions. When dropped on a target it will have an effect of causing landslides and avalanches that will seal the maze of tunnels and caves. In one strike hundreds of fighters can be wiped out.
Many of the caves storing weapons would be buried and out of reach. The use of the weapon degrades the enemy's ability to wage a war
Concentration of force
One of the principles of war, as enunciated by Clausewitz, is "concentration of force." If this principle is applied, there is a need to use 2 or 3 more bombs to destroy the entire maze of tunnels and caves.
The ISIS and the Taliban would be severely degraded in their ability to wage war. This is the reason Ashraf Ghani the Afghan president, agreed for the use of the bomb. In one stroke it has done something that would have taken months of fighting.
Donald's mettle
The MOAB is a weapon to be used in the right type of terrain. It could also be a success in mountainous areas like in Bolivia. The bomb is a part of the US inventory, and Donald has shown, he has the mettle to give the order for its use. It can be utilized against a force having the cover of natural terrain. If used judiciously it can bring victory against the Taliban and ISIS in Afghanistan.
