Editing Booby Trap (section)

==Effects==

In addition to the obvious ability of booby traps to kill or injure, their presence has other effects. These include the ability to:

*demoralize soldiers as booby traps kill or maim comrades
*keep soldiers continually stressed, suspicious and unable to relax because it is difficult for them to know which areas, buildings or objects are safe
*slows down troop movement as soldiers are forced to sweep areas to see if there are more booby traps.
*make soldiers cautious instead of aggressive and confident
*create no-go areas (real or imagined) after a booby trap has killed or wounded someone
*cause a section or platoon to have to stop in order to deal with casualties, thus slowing and delaying those troops
*create confusion and disorientation as a prelude to an ambush

Booby traps are indiscriminate weapons; like anti-personnel mines they can harm civilians and other non-combatants (during and after the conflict) who are unaware of their presence. Therefore, it is vitally important for any force which places booby traps to keep an accurate record of their location so they can be cleared when the conflict is over.

[[Category: Tactical]]