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Guerrilla Ambush

The military actions of a guerrilla group must take the form of quick lightning attacks which strike unexpectedly and quickly disappear. Hit and run tactics allow the urban guerrillas to strike at the enemy without presenting a target for the enemy's counter-attack.

For this reason, the ambush is the primary method of engaging the enemy. In the initial stages of a guerrilla struggle, small enemy detachments are ambushed in order to obtain weapons, ammunition and supplies. As the guerrilla forces grow larger, more powerful enemy units can be successfully ambushed and destroyed.

The first step to be taken in planning a guerrilla action is to select an appropriate target. In many ways, the type of ambush to be laid has an effect on the tactics to be used.

The initial operations carried out by a guerrilla unit should be limited to simple and relatively risk-free actions, such as mining a stretch of road, ambushing a solitary enemy patrol or vehicle, or an assassination of an occupation official. These limited operations give the urban guerrillas a chance to learn to work with each other, and also to sharpen their operational skills. Success in these simple operations also gives a sense of confidence for future
operations.

After the guerrilla team has gained operational experience and has captured suitable weapons, it must graduate to more complicated and dangerous tasks such as ambushing enemy supply convoys, troop columns and high-level authorities.

The urban ambush must be meticulously planned, keeping in mind the fundamental considerations of mobility, surprise, local superiority, and knowledge of the terrain. A good ambush site must provide cover and concealment for the ambushing forces

while leaving little cover for enemy troops. It must provide a good all-around defense for the guerrillas and good fields of fire to saturate the ambush site.

The guerrilla's intelligence concerning the target must be complete. If the target of the ambush is an official of the regime or an individual vehicle, accurate information must be obtained concerning the schedule, route and any escorts or protection which may be encountered. Reconnaissance teams disguised as joggers, workers or innocent persons "going for a walk" must observe the target closely to determine its routine. Guerrillas planning an ambush on a supply convoy must know its route, time of departure, destination and speed of the convoy, as well as what supplies or materiel it is transporting, what weapons and armaments it carries for defense, and how many escorting vehicles it will have.

Once the target has been reconned, it is time to select an ambush team to assault it. The ambush team is divided into five-person firing teams, each with a nominated leader who is responsible to the ambush commander. These firing teams are grouped into four areas, rear support groups, close support groups, assault groups,
and reserve groups.

The rear groups serve to isolate the area of action and to prevent enemy reinforcements from interfering with the ambush. They also serve as lookouts and early-warning sentries. After the ambush is completed, they function as rear guards to cover the withdrawal of the main guerrilla force. The rear support groups are armed with mines, grenades, at least one light machine gun, assault rifles or semi-automatic rifles.

The close support groups provide fire support for the ambush. They slop the enemy when the ambush is triggered and annihilate him with fire. The close support teams are armed with light machine guns, rifles, sub-machine guns, grenades and mines.

The assault groups are the actual fighting force of the ambush. Their task is to overwhelm the enemy after he has been weakened by fire from the close support teams. The assault groups are armed with rifles, submachine guns, shotguns and grenades. If the enemy attempts a counter-ambush assault, the guerrilla assault teams serve as a blocking force to trap the enemy in the ambush site.

The reserve groups are intended to reinforce any of the other groups if the need arises (this usually means reinforcing the assault groups if the enemy attempts to assault into the ambush.) It is armed with rifles, pistols or shotguns. After the ambush, the reserve teams function as stretcher bearers or porters who carry captured supplies and equipment.

In addition to these combat forces, the ambush team is accompanied by a detachment of medical personnel to treat casualties.

The number of firing teams needed in the ambush will vary with the circumstances. In narrow built-up areas, a smaller guerrilla team can cover the ambush site effectively. Ambushes of individual vehicles will require smaller guerrilla forces than ambushes on troops or supply convoys. The ambush forces should be just large enough to carry out their task, without being too large for easy command and control.

For security reasons, the urban guerrillas live dispersed in widely separated safehouses. Once the ambush has been planned, the necessary fighters must be clandestinely contacted and assembled into firing teams. If possible, the firing teams should have an opportunity to fully rehearse the planned operation and practice for dealing with all possible circumstances. Since communication
during the ambush will be difficult, the plan must be a simple and uncomplicated one, and each individual fighter must know his role and be able to perform it without guidance or direction.

On the day of the ambush, guerrilla fighters assemble at a pre-planned rendezvous point to receive weapons and final instructions. This RV should be some distance away from the ambush site, far enough to be outside the zone normally patrolled by the state security forces. The guerrillas leave all unnecessary equipment at the RV before proceeding to the ambush site.

A two or three person standing patrol should be left at the RV to provide rear security and to safeguard it against enemy forces. This team should be in radio contact with the ambush commander to warn if the RV is compromised before the fighters return.

When the ambush team is armed and assembled at the RV, it must occupy the ambush site and wait for the target to appear. This process must be absolutely clandestine to prevent informers or spies from spotting the ambush and giving warning. The ambush site is occupied slowly by two or three persons at a time.

The rear support groups move into position about half an hour before the raid. These teams occupy any potential routes which may be taken by an enemy column sent to reinforce the target. Highways, bridges, foot paths and railroad tracks should be watched by rear support teams, and ambushes laid for any approaching enemy forces. If an enemy force does approach, the rear support team's task is to hold them off long enough for the ambush team to complete its job and withdraw.

The rear support team must take care to stay well-hidden, in a position from which it can attack and stop enemy forces with rifle and machine gun fire, as well as grenades and Molotov cocktails.

Once the rear support teams have assumed their positions and established contact with the ambush commander, the close support teams infiltrate into their positions at the ambush site. These
support teams should be close enough to the ambush site to provide effective and concentrated fire which will saturate the site. If close support teams are stationed along both sides of the ambush site, they should be at differing levels to avoid the danger of crossfire, i.e., the teams on one side of the road should be on the first floor of these buildings, while those on the other side should be on the second or third, out of the line of fire of the first team. In this way, concentrated fire can be delivered to all points of the ambush zone.

The ambush team's machine guns should be emplaced so as to seal off both ends of the ambush zone and to cover it completely with fire. If no machine guns are available, groups of riflemen must serve this purpose instead.

After the close support teams are in position, the assault group moves in. The assault teams must be in a protected position as close as possible to the ambush zone. If mines, roadblocks, etc.,
are to be used in the ambush, they are placed by the assault teams under cover from the close support guerrillas.

Once the site has been occupied and the ambush set, the guerrillas must wait until their target enters the ambush zone. This requires a tremendous amount of discipline. The guerrillas must remain absolutely invisible and silent to avoid giving away the ambush. Snipers must stay away from windows or doorways. Buildings and rooms which are occupied by the ambush forces must be kept secure, and any civilians who are found there must be held securely and silently until after the operation.

In many instances, exact intelligence information may be difficult to obtain and it may not be known what route the target may be taking. In these circumstances, it is necessary to emplace an ambush encompassing the entire area of possible approach. This is done most easily by setting up a wide net of rear support lookouts and choosing several possible ambush sites within this area, each manned by a separate ambush team. When the lookouts spot the target and determine its route, the appropriate ambush teams are alerted and, when the target enters an ambush zone, it is attacked.

This type of operation requires more careful planning than the simple ambush. Each team should be in radio contact with each other to coordinate their actions. Withdrawals should be planned to separate RV's and every possible problem must be anticipated and planned for.

The ambush may have as its goal any of several options. It may have the purpose of destroying the enemy detachment completely and capturing a supply of weapons, ammunition or other supplies. It may be designed to attack and loot a portion of a larger enemy column or convoy. It may have as its goal the capture of a prisoner for interrogation or intelligence purposes. Or it may simply have the goal of hitting the enemy to cause maximum casualties before hastily withdrawing.

When the rear support teams warn of the approach of the target, the ambush team must ready its weapons and prepare to spring the ambush. There must be some definite signal which marks the beginning of the ambush action.

This may be a shot fired by the commander, the detonation of a mine or hand grenade, or a burst of fire from the machine gun. It is vital that no actions be taken until this signal is given, since premature firing will alert the enemy to the existence of hostile forces.