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Booby trap

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This article is about the device. For other uses, seeBooby trap (disambiguation).
A booby trap withpunji sticks

Abooby trapis a device or setup that is intended to kill, harm or surprise a human or another animal. It is triggered by the presence or actions of the victim and sometimes has some form of bait designed to lure the victim towards it. The trap may be set to act upon trespassers that enter restricted areas, and it can be triggered when the victim performs an action (e.g., opening a door, picking something up, or switching something on). It can also be triggered by vehicles driving along a road, as in the case ofimprovised explosive devices(IEDs).

Booby traps should not be confused withmantrapswhich are designed to catch a person. Lethal booby traps are often used in warfare, particularlyguerrilla warfare,and traps designed to cause injury or pain are also sometimes used by criminals wanting to protect drugs or other illicit property, and by some owners of legal property who wish to protect it from theft. Booby traps which merely cause discomfort or embarrassment are a popular form ofpractical joke.

Etymology

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TheSpanishwordbobotranslates to "stupid, daft, naïve, simple, fool, idiot, clown, funny man, one who is easily cheated" and similar pejorative terms. The slang ofbobo,bubie,translates to "dunce". Variations of this word exist in other languages (such as Latin), with their meaning being "to stammer".[1]

In approximately 1590, the word began appearing in the English language asbooby,meaning "stupid person, slow bird".[2]The seabird in question was the genusSula,with their common name beingboobies.These birds have large flat feet and wide wingspans for marine habitats but are clumsy and slow on shore making them easy to catch.[3]The birds are also known for landing aboard seagoing vessels, whereupon they have been eaten by the crew.[4]

The phrase booby trap originally applied to schoolboy pranks, but took on its more serious connotation duringWorld War I.[2]

Military booby traps

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Vietnam War:Republic of Korea Armed Forcessoldiers show Vietnamese villagers types ofViet Congbooby traps.
A group of 105mmartillery shellswithplastic explosivestuffed into theirfuzepockets. Each of the 5 shells has been linked together with reddetcordto make themdetonatesimultaneously. To turn this assembly into a booby trap, the final step would be to connect an M142 firing device to the detcord and hide everything under some form of cover e.g. newspapers or a bed-sheet.
Booby-trap firing devices, c. 1941: press, pull and release switches; mass-produced components intended for the construction of booby traps.[5]
A YugoslavPOMZanti-personnel mine that has been booby trapped with a hand grenade. A deminer could disable the stake mine, only to set off the hand-grenade when they remove the mine for disposal. (Balkans 1996)

A military booby trap is designed to kill or injure a person who activates its trigger, or employed to reveal the location of an enemy by setting off a signalling device. Most, but not all, military booby traps involve explosives.[6]

Part of the skill in placing booby traps lies in exploiting natural human behaviors such as habit, self–preservation, curiosity or acquisitiveness. A common trick is to provide victims with a simple solution to a problem, for example, leaving only one door open in an otherwise secure building, luring them straight toward the firing mechanism.[7]

An example that exploits an instinct for self–preservation was used in theVietnam War.Spikes known aspunji stickswere hidden in grassy areas. When fired upon, soldiers instinctively sought to take cover by throwing themselves down on the ground, impaling themselves on the spikes.[8]

Many purpose–built booby–trap firing devices exist such as the highly versatile M142[9][10]universal firing device (identical to the British L5A1[11]or Australian F1A1[12]), orYugoslavianUMNOP-1[13]which allow a variety of different ways of triggering explosives e.g. viatrip wire(either pulling it or releasing the tension on it),[14]direct pressure on an object (e.g. standing on it), or pressure release (lift/shift something) etc.[15][16][17][18]

Most explosive booby traps use between 250 g and 1 kg of explosive. Since most booby traps are rigged to detonate within a metre of the victim's body, this is adequate to kill or severely wound.[19]

Effects

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Booby traps are indiscriminate weapons. Likeanti-personnel mines,they can harm civilians and noncombatants during and after the conflict. The use against civilians is prohibited by theProtocol on Mines, Booby-Traps and Other Devices,and the protocol also prohibits boobytrapping e.g. the wounded or dead, medical equipment, food, and drink.[20]

History

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A type of booby trap was referred to in an 1839 news story inThe Times.[21]

During theVietnam War,motorcycles were rigged with explosives by theNational Liberation Frontand abandoned. U.S. soldiers would be tempted to ride the motorcycle and thus trigger the explosives. In addition, NLF soldiers would rigrubber band grenadesand place them in huts that US soldiers would likely burn. Another popular booby trap was the "Grenade in a Can",a grenade with the safety pin removed in a container and a string attached, sometimes with the grenade's fuse mechanism modified to give a much shorter delay than the four to seven seconds typical with grenade fuses. The NLF soldiers primarily used these on doors and attached them to tripwires on jungle paths.[22]

TheCIAandGreen Beretscountered by booby trapping the enemy's ammunition supplies, in an operation code–named "Project Eldest Son".The propellant in a rifle or machine–gun cartridge was replaced with high explosive. Upon being fired, the sabotaged round would destroy the gun and kill or injure the shooter. Mortar shells were similarly rigged to explode when dropped down the tube, instead of launching properly. This ammunition was then carefully re–packed to eliminate any evidence of tampering, and planted in enemy munitions dumps by covert insertion teams. A sabotaged round might also be planted in a rifle magazine or machine–gun belt and left on the body of a dead NLF soldier, in anticipation that the deceased's ammo would be picked up and used by his comrades. No more than one sabotaged round would be planted in any case, magazine, or belt of ammunition, to reduce the chances of the enemy finding it no matter how diligently they inspected their supplies. False rumors and forged documents were circulated to make it appear that the Communist Chinese were supplying the NLF with defective weapons and ammunition.[23]

Northern Ireland

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Duringthe Troubles,anethnonationalistconflict inNorthern Ireland,booby traps were used byIrish republicanandUlster loyalistparamilitaries to target Britishsecurity forcesand civilians. TheProvisional Irish Republican Army(IRA) was the most prolific user of the booby traps during the conflict; according to theSutton Index of Deaths,180 people were killed during the Troubles as the result of booby trap bombs, the vast majority of them laid by the IRA. A common type of booby trap was thecar bomb,which involved attaching a bomb to a car so that starting or driving it would detonate the explosive.[24]

Middle East

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During theAl-Aqsa Intifada,some Arab–Palestinian groups made wide use of booby traps.

The largest use of booby traps (between 2000 and 2005, the period of the Intifada) was in theBattle of JeninduringOperation Defensive Shieldwhere a large number (1000–2000 according to Palestinian militant captured in Jenin during the battle[25] ) of explosive devices were planted by insurgents. Booby traps had been laid in the streets of both the camp and the town, ready to be triggered if a foot snagged a tripwire or a vehicle rolled over a mine. Some of the bombs were huge, containing as much as 250 lb (110 kg) of explosives.[26]To counter the booby traps, anti–tank and anti–personnel mines theIDFsentarmored D9 bulldozersto clear the area out of any explosive device and booby trap planted. The IDF D9 bulldozers were heavilyarmoredand thus did not sustain any damage from the explosions, which were triggered by them as they pushed forwards. Eventually, a dozen D9 bulldozers went into action, razing the center of the refugee camp and forcing the Palestinian militants inside to surrender.

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  • Simple Trou de loup booby trap: concealed pitfall with sharp spike at the bottom
    SimpleTrou de loupbooby trap: concealed pitfall with sharp spike at the bottom
  • USSR booby trap firing device - pull fuze: normally connected to a tripwire
    USSRbooby trap firing device - pullfuze:normally connected to atripwire
  • Alternative design of USSR booby trap firing device - pull fuze: normally connected to tripwire
    Alternative design of USSR booby trap firing device - pull fuze: normally connected to tripwire
  • USSR booby-trap firing device - pressure fuze: victim steps on loose floorboard with fuze concealed underneath
    USSR booby-trap firing device - pressure fuze: victim steps on loose floorboard with fuze concealed underneath
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See also:Katko v. Briney

Booby traps have been applied as defensive weapons against unwelcome guests or against non–militarytrespassers,but most jurisdictions consider the practice illegal.[citation needed]

Practical jokes

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Main article:Practical joke device

Instead of being used to kill, maim or injure people, booby traps can also be used for entertainment. Practical joke booby traps are typically disguised as everyday items such as cigars or packets of chewing gum, nuts or other snack items. When the victims attempts to use the item, the trap is triggered. Two of the best known examples of this are theexploding cigaranddribble glass;others include theSnake Nut Canandshocking gum.Booby traps can also be constructed out of household or workplace items and be triggered when the victim performs a common action. Examples of this include loosening the bolts in a chair so that it collapses when sat upon, or placing a bucket of water on top of a partly open door so that when the door is fully opened, the bucket tips onto the victim.[27]

See also

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References

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  1. ^"Bobo English Spanish Translation | Traductor ingles español".Spanishdict.com.Archivedfrom the original on 2011-09-05.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  2. ^ab"Online Etymology Dictionary".Etymonline.com.Archivedfrom the original on 2012-08-23.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  3. ^"Blue-Footed Boobies, Blue-Footed Booby Pictures, Blue-Footed Booby Facts - National Geographic".Animals.nationalgeographic.com. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-07-14.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  4. ^Bligh, William (1792).A voyage to the South sea...Retrieved2011-09-15– via Google Books.
  5. ^HM Government (1941).Military Training Pamphlet No 36 Part IV: Booby Traps.War Office.
  6. ^The Handbook Of The SAS And Elite Forces. How The Professionals Fight And Win. Edited by Jon E. Lewis. p.334-Tactics And Techniques, Personal Skills And Techniques. Robinson Publishing Ltd 1997. ISBN 1-85487-675-9
  7. ^John Pike."FM 20-32 CHAPTER 13".Archivedfrom the original on 1 May 2021.Retrieved23 February2015.
  8. ^"Tactical and Materiel Innovations".History.army.mil. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-09-07.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  9. ^"M142_Firing_Device_Dem_Comb"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2009-03-27.Retrieved2009-11-03.
  10. ^LEXPEV."M142 Multipurpose Firing Device".Lexpev.nl. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-09-07.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  11. ^LEXPEV."Firing device demolition combination L5A1".Archivedfrom the original on 28 May 2016.Retrieved23 February2015.
  12. ^LEXPEV."F1A1 Firing Device".Archivedfrom the original on 3 March 2016.Retrieved23 February2015.
  13. ^LEXPEV."UMNOP-1".Archived fromthe originalon 4 October 2011.Retrieved23 February2015.
  14. ^"British Demolition Equipment".Archivedfrom the original on 24 February 2015.Retrieved23 February2015.
  15. ^LEXPEV."UMNOP-1".Lexpev.nl. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-10-04.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  16. ^LEXPEV."Switch, No6 Release Mk1".Lexpev.nl. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-10-04.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  17. ^LEXPEV."Switch, No3 Release Mk1".Lexpev.nl. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-10-04.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  18. ^LEXPEV."Release firing device M5".Lexpev.nl. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-07-23.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  19. ^"Department of the Army Field Manual: Boobytraps"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2008-06-27.Retrieved2008-06-02.
  20. ^"Customary IHL - Practice Relating to Rule 80. Booby-Traps".ihl-databases.icrc.org.Retrieved2022-06-01.
  21. ^Allegedly made to injure an actress,Mrs. Charles Mathews,a parcel left for her at theOlympic Theatrecontained a mahogany box, within which was an apparent explosive device: 'On the interior of the lid was fastened a small parcel, neatly made up, supposed to contain detonating powder,... beneath which was attached a piece of sand–paper, which was so placed as to act upon several matches, and thus set fire to a quantity of gunpowder... the strings, which were attached to the piece of twine fastened to the cover... were so contrived as to act as a trigger, so that the moment the lid should be raised the whole... would instantly explode.' Although the newspaper carried the story, it did so sceptically and described it as a 'hoax'.The Times(London, England), 6 March 1839, p. 6.
  22. ^"In Its Own Words".Hrw.org.Archivedfrom the original on 2009-07-25.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  23. ^"Project Eldest Son".Jcs-group.com. Archived fromthe originalon 2011-09-27.Retrieved2011-09-15.
  24. ^"CAIN: Sutton Index of Deaths - menu page".Archivedfrom the original on 6 December 2010.Retrieved23 February2015.
  25. ^"Palestinian fighter describes 'hard fight' in Jenin".CNN.com.April 23, 2002. Archived fromthe originalon January 9, 2008.RetrievedSeptember 18,2008.
  26. ^Rees, Matt."Inside the Battle of Jenin".Time.Archived fromthe originalon December 7, 2008.RetrievedSeptember 19,2008.
  27. ^Koneazny, John J. (2001).Behind Friendly Lines.GeneralStore PublishingHouse.ISBN9781894263481.Retrieved23 February2015.
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