![]() Yet another option is to besiege the city. At other times, they simply flatten as much of the city as possible before/while/instead of fighting over it, thereby neutralizing some of the advantages of the "urban" aspect, and usually rendering the place strategically worthless in the process, as well as being, shall we say, problematic to any remaining citizenry. In this close-quarters fighting, weapons that have limited applications in conventional modern warfare, such as submachine guns and shotguns become favored weapons.Īs an unfortunate side effect of the dirty, casualty-ridden, and momentum-killing nature of the fighting, armies (and their political masters) are often forced to simply leave the job half done by avoiding cities altogether (usually due to political implications of such a prolonged, bloody conflict). Some armies and governments are worried about the international law implications, ethical aspects, or public relations impact and may try to minimize civilian casualties.įorget the rules of "gentlemanly warfare." It's all close-quarters guerrilla warfare here-ambushes, snipers, booby traps, bayonets, Improvised Weapons (entrenching shovels and Molotov cocktails). The Nazis resorted to systematically burning houses block by block using flamethrowers and blowing up basements and sewers. The Nazis had no qualms about leveling civilian buildings and using flamethrowers during Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. note The degree to which an invading army and their political masters care about civilian casualties in urban warfare varies. Armored vehicles have difficulty maneuvering in tight streets and are vulnerable to ambush from rocket propelled grenades (RPGs), and artillery and air support won't do you any good if the enemy keeps changing positions, has its resources dispersed over the city, and is enmeshed amongst civilians (which raises the risk of bombing or shelling them). Any building, even a bomb-shattered ruin, can be turned into an armed stronghold and pose a major obstacle. Clearing a city full of determined defenders is a very difficult task, as the urban environment negates the effectiveness of many of the most powerful weapons of modern militaries, such as tanks, field artillery and aircraft, leveling the playing field somewhat for not-so-well-equipped forces, including La Résistance that might oppose them. Urban warfare is very different from conventional combat in the open, in which commanders have wide latitude to maneuver tanks, artillery and infantry, and where air power plays an important role.
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