Lara Jakes writes for RealClearDefense that so-called "barrel bombs" are becoming a weapon of choice for third world governments facing insurgencies. First seen in Syria, they have been used in Iraq, Sudan and perhaps elsewhere.
The article does much hand-wringing and askance-looking at these devices, in my opinion too much so. The use of barrel bombs against rebel-held neighborhoods is no different morally than what RAF Lancasters visited on German cities or U.S. B-29s did to Tokyo.
Widespread use of low-tech "flying IEDs" will tend to dissuade rebel groups from trying to take and hold territory, forcing them back into use of the strike-and-melt-away tactics made popular by the Viet Cong. It is unclear whether mandating this change in tactics constitutes a plus for embattled governments doing the bombing.
