OSI helps keep Bagram safe

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Andrew Gates
  • 455th Expeditionary Operations Group Public Affairs
BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan (AFPN) --  When responding to attacks against Bagram, one team’s philosophy is simple: The best defense is a proactive offense.

That offense is supporting the base operations defense plan, said Special Agent Jeff Rutherford, Air Force Office of Special Investigations detachment commander here. The team includes Army military police, Air Force security forces and explosive ordnance disposal experts and many others dedicated to preventing attacks.

“This has been an outstanding opportunity for us to work together with the Army, who owns the base, and many other professionals to bring safety and stability to the people who work on Bagram,” Agent Rutherford said.

Agent Rutherford and co-worker, Isaac Suydam, are from the AFOSI’s anti-terrorism special team at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas. They have received specialized training to operate effectively and safely in a high-threat environment such as Afghanistan.

“Isaac and I are certified instructors, so we can give the people responding to attacks some specific training to help them safely accomplish the mission,” Agent Rutherford said.

The key to being proactive is trying to uncover the indications and warnings of an impending attack, he said.

“We work with Army military police and agencies in a specified area around the base to develop leads to discover illegal weapons caches and possible attacks,” Agent Rutherford said.

Their efforts have been effective, as they have discovered more than 13 illegal weapons caches in three months. In these caches, the team has discovered more than 12,000 weapons, including heavy machine guns, anti-personnel mines and 107 mm rockets.

“Stand-off weapons, such as the 107 mm rocket, seem to be the weapon of choice for attacks here,” Agent Rutherford said.

Although the team’s goal is to stop all attacks against the base, it is not always successful. If an enemy attacks, as one did in late June, a rapid response team gathers.

“We stand up operations immediately after an attack,” Agent Rutherford said. “We bring together security elements, EOD and medical teams, coordinate with the Army to find out what (troops in observation) towers are seeing, examine the intelligence available and go through a rapid mission planning process.”

After coordinating with the Army, team members will go out and talk to local contacts to find out where the attack came from and learn what information they can about the attacking group, he said. The process is quick; getting from the planning meeting to rolling out the gates usually takes about half an hour, he said.

That speed is important for two reasons, Agent Rutherford said.

“First, this is the only response the base is going to have,” he said. “We are not going to wait for an attack and sit back and allow (the enemy) to shoot at us at will; we will come out and find out who’s responsible and apprehend them, if possible. They know we will be coming out there, so it narrows their targeting cycle. They are not going to be able to sit in one area all night long and just walk rockets onto the base.”

The second reason for speed is to preserve evidence.

“The longer you wait to respond, the further the attackers will get away, and people will start to forget important information,” Agent Rutherford said.

During another rocket attack, the speedy response allowed the team to identify the point of origin. When they got there, team members found three more rockets and a possible explosive device. EOD experts were able to defuse the weapons, Agent Rutherford said.

Quick reaction also gives the team more information as to who might have conducted the attack, because the experts are able to identify motivations of the attackers and which groups the attacks might have come from, Agent Rutherford said.

Most of the people the team encounters are supportive of the base, he said.

“About 99.9 percent of the people we encounter are extremely supportive of our activities; kids give us thumbs up [and] people are friendly,” Agent Rutherford said. “This base is a center of gravity for national security and the locals recognize that. We have a better relationship with the locals than many other bases. They know we work for the base and we’re trying to keep the area safe. There are lots of outside groups (that) are losing traction; they have lost their standing in the area.”

The quick response and proactive searches for weapons caches have meant that fewer enemies from those “outside agencies” have attacked here recently.

“We received information … that the base was to be attacked one night when illumination conditions were perfect for a rocket attack,” Agent Rutherford said. “We went out, woke people up, responded to see if we could discover what was going on and possibly prevented an attack. Although there was no attack that evening, we got ahead of the curve.”

When they respond, team members go out in full force. Regular joint operations are commonplace, especially when rapidly responding to a threat.

“We respond with Army MPs (and) bring in significant firepower and presence,” Agent Rutherford said. “I don’t believe in parity; our teams go in with overwhelming force. I don’t want a fair fight if it comes down to that.”

The proactive offense, rapid response and overwhelming force are the hallmarks of an effective program, Agent Rutherford said.

“I’d like to think being proactive, taking illegal weapons off the street and responding quickly have a negative impact on the bad guys’ operations,” he said. “They can’t hide weapons caches anymore and can’t watch the base with impunity -- we’ll find out.”