Non-lethal weapons, also called nonlethal weapons, less-lethal weapons,Michigan State Police Training Manual 2012 (pp. 68-70): same effective definition for "Less-lethal weapons" as what DoDD 3000.03 (2013) has for "Non-lethal weapons" less-than-lethal weapons, non-deadly weapons, compliance weapons, or pain-inducing weapons are intended to be lethality than conventional weapons such as knife and with metal-projectile ammunition. It is often understood that unintended or incidental casualties are risked wherever force is applied; however, non-lethal weapons minimise the risk of casualties (e.g. serious/permanent injuries or death) as much as possible. Non-lethal weapons are used in police and combat situations to limit the escalation of conflict where employment of lethal force is prohibited or undesirable, where rules of engagement require minimum casualties, or where policy restricts the use of conventional force. However, these weapons occasionally cause serious injuries or death due to allergic reactions, improper use and/or other factors; for this reason the term "less-lethal" has been preferred by some organizations as it describes the risks of death more accurately than the term "non-lethal", which some have argued is a misnomer.
Non-lethal weapons may be used by conventional military in a range of missions across the force continuum. They may also be used by military police, by United Nations forces, and by occupation forces for peacekeeping and stability operations. Non-lethal weapons may also be used to channelize a battlefield, control the movement of civilian populations, or to limit civilian access to restricted areas (as they were utilized by the USMC's 1st Marine Expeditionary Force in Somalia in 1995). Similar weapons, tactics, techniques and procedures are employed by police forces domestically in riot control, prisoner control, crowd control, refugee control, and self-defense, where the terminology of "less-than-lethal" is often used.
Recognizing the need to limit the escalation of force, research and development of a range of non-lethal weapons has since been undertaken internationally by governments and weapons manufacturers to fill the need for such weapons. Some non-lethal weapons may provide more effective riot control than firearms, truncheons or bayonets with less risk of loss of life or serious injury. Before the general availability of early military non-lethal weapons in the mid 1990s, war-fighters had few or no casualty-limiting options for the employment of scalable force and were continually at risk whenever lethal force was prohibited during sensitive missions.
In 2001, the United States Marine Corps revealed its development of a less-than-lethal energy weapon called the Active Denial System, a focused high frequency microwave device said to be capable of heating all living matter in the target area rapidly and continuously for the duration of the beam, causing transient intolerable pain but no lasting damage. The skin temperature of a person subjected to this weapon can jump to approximately in as little as 2 seconds depending on the skin's starting temperature. The system is nonlethal (the penetration of the beam into human skin is only a few millimeters).
In 2004, author Jon Ronson cited an unclassified military report titled "Non-Lethal Weapons: Terms and References" 21 acoustic weapons were listed, in various stages of development, including the Infrasound ("Very low-frequency sound which can travel long distances and easily penetrate most buildings and vehicles ... biophysical effects are projected to be: nausea, loss of bowels, disorientation, vomiting, potential internal organ damage or death may occur. Superior to ultrasound...)", however no such effects had been achieved .
In 2010, the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate Non-Lethal Weapons Reference Book was created. The weapons in this book are currently in development.
Police officers on patrol were traditionally armed with batons or pistols or both, and non-lethal methods of subduing an attacker centered on hand-fighting techniques such as jujutsu and baton use. In the 1980s and 1990s officers began deploying non-lethal personal sidearms such as , and eventually electroshock weapons such as , which were developed for use by police and also found a market in self-defense by private citizens. However, these weapons were developed for non-lethal resolution of one-on-one conflicts.
During the 1990s and early 2000s (decade), interest in various other forms of less-than-lethal weapons for military and police use rose. Amongst other factors, the use of less-than-lethal weapons may be legal under international law and treaty in situations where weapons such as aerosol sprays or gases defined as chemical are not.
Between the years of 1987–1990, after a three-year field study by the FBI's Firearms Training Unit; In 1990, the use of oleoresin capsicum was approved and used by the FBI, the first official law enforcement agency to do so.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s (decade), police began to adopt a new pepper spray delivery system based on the equipment used in paintball. A specialized paintball, called a "pepperball", is filled with liquid or powdered capsaicin, the active ingredient in pepper spray, and is propelled by compressed gas using a paintball marker similar to those used for the sport but operating at a higher pressure. The impact of the capsule is immediately painful (a pepperball's shell is thicker than a standard paintball and is fired at a higher velocity), and it breaks open on impact, dispersing the capsaicin with similar effect to aerosol-delivered pepper spray. However, to be most effective, pepper spray must contact the eyes, nose, or mouth of the target; pepper spray on clothing or tougher skin has a much reduced effect.
Notwithstanding their design intent, non-lethal weapons can still cause harm. This is particularly true with certain technologies that interact with appropriately vulnerable regions; an example is kinetic munitions on the head, neck, eyes, abdominal and urogenital regions of the body. As a result, some analysts describe "non-lethal" as a misnomer and recommend defining them as "less-lethal", whereas other sources identify "non-lethal" as representing a goal of minimization of producing fatalities or permanent injuries while not literally requiring minimization to a zero probability thereof.
As different parts of the body differ in vulnerability, and because people vary in weight and fitness, any weapon powerful enough to incapacitate may be capable of killing under certain circumstances. Thus, "non-lethal force" does have some risk of causing death: in this context, "non-lethal" means only "not intended to kill".
Several groups maintain there is great room for improvement in non-lethal weapons and procedures for their use. Claims for the relative safety of such weapons are usually contingent on their being used "properly". For example, the developed during the 1960s were supposed to be fired at the ground and hit the target only after ricochet, and other non-lethal bullets are designed to be fired at the lower body; they can be lethal if fired directly at the head.
In 1972, stun grenades were used to capture the hijacked Sabena Flight 571, allowing the Israeli forces headed by Ehud Barak and including Benjamin Netanyahu to storm the plane and take it over within 10 minutes. They captured two terrorists and killed Ali Taha, the leader of the terrorist group, and his aide, while rescuing all passengers (three were wounded and one died of her injuries several days later).
A stun grenade was apparently used by members of the IHH against the IDF soldiers during the Gaza flotilla raid at the beginning of the IDF storming of the Mavi Marmara.
In June 2010, in Kenya, a stun grenade was used to draw attention, and then a real grenade along with an explosive package were used, killing many people. In April, during the 2010 Kyrgyzstani uprising, police attempted to use stun grenades to stop a demonstration but the crowd overwhelmed the police. In March stun grenades were used by Belarusian police in Minsk against demonstrators, and in September they were used by Greek police in Athens. In these latter two cases, the demonstrations were dispersed with no injuries.
In February 2011, stun grenades were seen used by Egyptian police against rioters.
A 1998 estimate by the International Association of Chiefs of Police suggested at least 113 pepper spray-related fatalities had occurred in the United States, all with aggravating factors such as intoxication, pre-existing health problems, or from the police use of airway-restrictive immobilizing holds that can cause positional asphyxia. The Southern California chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union recommends against maximal prone restraint techniques following pepper spray application, and they caution that anyone sprayed should be monitored to ensure effective breathing.
Journalist Rubén Salazar was killed in Los Angeles in 1970 by an errant CS gas canister during the Chicano riots. Other serious injuries and fatalities have occurred from either tear gas itself or the projectiles it is delivered in, including the critical injury of veteran Scott Olsen from a tear gas canister during the 2011 Occupy Oakland protests.
However, due to the difficulty of mass-producing them in the pre-modern age, they were rarely used except in the defense of limited areas or chokepoints, especially during sieges, where they were used to help seal breaches. Increasing ease of production still did not prevent these methods from slowly falling out of favor from the late Middle Ages onward.
Caltrops are still sometimes used in modern conflicts, such as during the Korean War, where Chinese troops, often wearing only light shoes, were particularly vulnerable. In modern times, special caltrops are also sometimes used against wheeled vehicles with pneumatic tires. Some South American urban guerrillas as the Tupamaros and Montoneros called them "miguelitos" and used these as a tactic to avoid pursuit after ambushes.
In the United States, the term "riot gun" more commonly refers to a riot shotgun that shoots or bean bag rounds.
In recent years, law enforcement, military and other security organizations sometimes use a type of paintball marker-like weapon that shoot frangibility pepper-spray projectiles, which rupture upon impact and release chemical that irritates the eyes and nose of nearby individuals. Such weapons are used generally in the role of stand-off weapons, where physical proximity to a suspect is deemed dangerous but deadly force is not warranted. The irritant payload may differ from product to product but is usually a capsaicinoid powder called Nonivamide (capsaicin II), and less frequently a liquid or gas. FAQ Page of Vendor PepperBall Technology - Retrieved October 7, 2011 Product Page of Vendor PepperBall Technology - Retrieved October 7, 2011 FN 303 projectiles Product Page - Retrieved October 7, 2011
The pulsed energy projectile is intended for riot control and is said to work over distances of up to 2 km. It weighs about 230 kg and will probably be mounted on vehicles. The weight could become lighter as laser production technology improves.
The system was developed by Mission Research Corporation (now owned by Orbital ATK). It uses a chemical deuterium fluoride laser device producing infrared laser pulses. The plasma (produced by the early part of the pulse) explodes because its absorb the energy of the later part of the pulse.
In 2003, a US military review reported that the electromagnetic radiation produced by PEPs had been shown to cause pain and temporary paralysis in animal experiments.
United States Special Operations Command FY 2010 plans included starting developmental work on a counter UAV pulsed energy projectile.
The ADS is a non-lethal, directed-energy weapon developed by the US military, designed for area denial, perimeter security and crowd control. Informally, the weapon has also been referred to as a "heat ray",Ross Kerber, "Ray gun, sci-fi staple, meets reality". Boston Globe, September 24, 2004. since it works by heating the surface of targets, such as the skin of targeted human subjects.
In 2011, the ADS was redesigned to make it smaller, more reliable, and able to be used on the move. The ADS II is being designed to operate from moving aircraft, as well as moving ground vehicles. The redesign does not address problems in different environmental conditions. Death Ray Turns Warm And Fuzzy – Strategypage.com, October 3, 2012
Air Force Special Operations Command is experimenting with mounting an ADS on the AC-130J Ghostrider gunship to target threatening crowds or individuals on the ground. This is to give the gunship a non-lethal option so the crew has more engagement options. Due to the increasing number of engagements in populated areas, the Air Force is aiming to field a system within 10 years to have enough aircraft available with non-lethal systems. US Special Forces pursuing AC-130-based 'active denial system' - Flightglobal.com, 29 July 2015 The aircraft will apparently use the ADS II version. AC-130J Gets A Ray Gun - Strategypage.com, 10 August 2015
Initially developed for military use, non-military products are becoming available for use in law enforcement and security.
Weapons designed to cause permanent blindness are banned by the 1995 United Nations Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons. The dazzler is a non-lethal force weapon intended to cause Flash blindness or disorientation and therefore falls outside this protocol.
The personnel halting and stimulation response rifle (PHASR) is a prototype Non-lethal force laser dazzler developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory's Directed Energy Directorate, U.S. Department of Defense.Eva D. Blaylock (Air Force Research Laboratory Directed Energy Directorate Public Affairs). New technology 'dazzles' aggressors, The Official Website of the U.S. Air Force, Posted November 2, 2005 Its purpose is to temporarily disorient and blind a target. Blinding laser weapons have been tested in the past, but were banned under the 1995 UN Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons, which the United States acceded to on 21 January 2009. The PHASR rifle, a low-intensity laser, is not prohibited under this regulation, as the blinding effect is intended to be temporary. It also uses a two-wavelength laser. PERSONNEL HALTING and STIMULATION RESPONSE (PHaSR) Fact Sheet, Air Force Research Laboratory, Office of Public Affairs, April 2006; Archived The PHASR was tested at Kirtland Air Force Base, part of the Air Force Research Laboratory Directed Energy Directorate in New Mexico.
According to the manufacturer's specifications, the systems weigh from and can emit sound in a 30°- 60° beam at 2.5 kHz. The manufacturer also produces systems for public address and mass notification use that broadcast 360°.
Although generally considered "non-lethal weapons", electromagnetic weapons do pose health threats to humans. In fact, "non-lethal weapons can sometimes be deadly."Air University Research Template: " NON-LETHAL WEAPONS: SETTING OUR PHASERS ON STUN? Potential Strategic Blessings and Curses of Non-Lethal Weapons on the Battlefield"; Erik L. Nutley, Lieutenant Colonel, USAF; August 2003; Occasional Paper No. 34; Center for Strategy and Technology; Air War College; Air University; Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama; PG12
United States Department of Defense policy explicitly states that non-lethal weapons "shall not be required to have a zero probability of producing fatalities or permanent injuries."Department of Defense; DIRECTIVE; NUMBER 3000.3; July 9, 1996; Certified Current as of November 21, 2003; ASD(SO/LIC); SUBJECT: Policy for Non-Lethal Weapons; References: (a) Title 10, United States Code; (b) DoD Directive TS-3600.1, "Information Warfare (U)", December 21, 1992; PG. 3 Although a Human Effects Advisory Panel was established in 1998 to provide independent assessment on human effects, data, and models for the use of 'non-lethal weapons' on the general population, Human Effects Advisory Panel Program ; presented to: NDIANon-Lethal Defense IV the TECOM Technology Symposium in 1997 concluded on non-lethal weapons: "Determining the target effects on personnel is the greatest challenge to the testing community," primarily because "the potential of injury and death severely limits human tests." However, "directed energy weapons that target the central nervous system and cause neurophysiological disorders" may violate the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons of 1980. And weapons that go beyond non-lethal intentions and cause "superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering" could violate the Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions of 1977." Non-Lethal Weaponry: From Tactical to Strategic Applications ; Colonel Dennis B. Herbert, USMC (Ret.), program developer, Institute for Non-Lethal Defense Technologies at Pennsylvania State University; pg. 4 Safety and evaluation of the physical and psychological effects of the long-term or repetitive uses of the pain-inducing non-lethal weapons on humans have not been well understood or studied in any great details. Any such studies require explicit consent of all participants so as not to violate the UN Convention against torture and other cruelties.
Suitable materials and tools to create electromagnetic weapons are commonly available. "The threat of electromagnetic bomb proliferation is very real."
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