Useless checkpoint bomb detector remains in use

A bomb-detector long exposed as useless continues to be used by the Iraqi Army and police at hundreds of checkpoints in Baghdad as their chief method of finding out if vehicles contain explosives and weapons.

The continuing reliance of the Iraqi security forces on the instrument may explain how al Qaeda has succeeded in sending vehicles packed with explosives undetected into Baghdad, where they have killed and wounded several thousand people over the past year.

The bomb-detectors, known as "sonars" to Iraqis, are hand-held devices with a "wand" that is supposed to twitch if there are explosives or weapons present. It is meant to work on the same principle as water-divining rods and has no power source, relying instead on the static electricity generated by the movement of the person holding it.

The British and American governments, numerous independent experts and repeated tests have shown that the ADE-651, manufactured by the ATSC company in the UK, does not work. Jim McCormick, the managing director of ATSC, was arrested on suspicion of fraud in January, and the British Government banned the export of the ADE-651.

At the same time, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki ordered an investigation into how the bomb-detectors had been bought at a cost of US$85 million by the Iraqi security forces in 2008 and 2009. Yesterday, ATSC was not answering the phone number given on its website.

Despite the well-attested uselessness of the bomb-detector, senior Iraqi security officials have said they are confident about its effectiveness and the Interior Ministry has never withdrawn it. A government spokesman said only some of the "sonars" were fake and these had been removed from service.

The normal procedure in Baghdad is for a policeman or soldier at a checkpoint to walk beside a vehicle holding the device. If it twitches, he tells the occupants of the vehicle that he suspects them of carrying explosives or weapons. When it turns out that these are not present, as is almost invariably the case, it is explained that the "sonar" has been misled by the presence of perfume or platinum fillings in teeth.

Many Iraqi policemen have ceased to believe that the ADE-651 works. Police Captain Hussein Ali says: "Time and again we have found it is useless." He said that when he and his men first received the instrument early last year, they believed they finally had the means of finding concealed explosives and weapons.

"We were told it was very modern and would free people from the fear of terrorism. Now we are embarrassed by it."

The use of the bomb-detectors inevitably makes it easier for al Qaeda to send its vehicle bombs through checkpoints. So many innocent vehicles are stopped that there is a permanent traffic jam in Baghdad during rush hour. Most people in the city are also doubtful about the effectiveness of the devices.

- Independent