FusionNet for Everyone!

So apparently this file that The Guardian was playing with that shows all the IED attacks is the SIGACTS listing from some combination of FusionNet and CIDNE (and maybe TiGR), all plotted on a map.

The improvised explosive device (IED) is the Taliban's weapon of choice, a deadly yet effective counter to the technological superiority of their western adversaries in Afghanistan. It is the biggest single cause of deaths of British troops in Helmand and has proven impossible to completely counter.

In their simplest form, IEDs are roadside bombs triggered by command wire, radio signal, mobile phone or by the victim, usually by walking or driving over the devices. Their explosive power comes from shells, diesel or fertiliser.

Despite their crudeness, the IEDs are a fearsome enemy. Insurgents employ ruses to outwit electronic counter-measures (ECM) – sophisticated devices used by western soldiers to jam radio signals. Earlier this year all-plastic IEDS, which cannot be detected by traditional mine-sweepers, started to appear on the battlefield. And they are every deadlier, with some able to penetrate the most thick-skinned armoured vehicle.
Extracted from the full Wikileaks database, this spreadsheet provides a unique record of attacks since 2004. It only covers roadside bombs and does not include person- or vehicle-borne suicide bombs. We have left out hoaxes (counted as IED incidents in official figures) and only include IED explosions, IED ambushes - where an explosion is combined with an ambush by insurgents - and those that have been found and cleared.

Good thing CIDNE's got that database secured, eh?

By: Brant