Nail bomb
Encyclopedia
The nail bomb is an anti-personnel explosive device
packed with nails to increase its wounding ability. The nails act as shrapnel
, leading almost certainly to greater loss of life and injury in inhabited areas than the explosives alone would. The nail bomb is also a type of flechette
weapon. Such weapons use bits of shrapnel
(steel balls
, nail heads, broken razors, darts
and bits of metal) to produce a large radius of destruction.
Nail bombs are often used by terrorists
, in particular by suicide bombers, since they cause large numbers of casualties when detonated in crowded places. Nail bombs can be detected via electromagnetic sensors and standard metal detectors.
, three members of the Weather Underground
were killed in the accidental explosion of a nail bomb intended to be set off at a non-commissioned officers dance at the Fort Dix, New Jersey
Army base.
A number of nail bombings occurred during The Troubles
in Northern Ireland
, either by Republicans
or Loyalists
.
A number of nail-bombings occurred in 1999 when the Neo-Nazi David Copeland
planted several devices in London
targeted against ethnic minorities and homosexuals.
On 9 June 2004 a nail bomb was detonated in Cologne, Germany, by the Nazi terrorist group "National Socialist Underground" („Nationalsozialistischer Untergrund“) in a popular Turkish shopping quarter called "Little Istanbul", wounding 22 people and damaging several shops and parked cars. According to the magazine "Der Spiegel" the Nazi group claimed responsibility for the attack in a DVD found in the ruins of a house in Zwickau (D) that exploded on 4 November 2011.[4]
On December 31, 2005 an Indonesian marketplace was nail-bombed, and a second undetonated bomb was found nearby.
On June 28, 2007 a nail bomb that was assumed to be a part of a terror plot was discovered in a Mercedes
car and was consequently defused by police in the West End of London
. There was a second car bomb, further down the street that was apparently scheduled to detonate as evacuees and survivors fled down the street, to a nearby tube station. It is probable this bomb was also a nail/shrapnel device.
On December 21, 2007 a nail bomb was detonated in Sherpao
, Pakistan
by a suicide bomber. Detonation occurred inside a tightly packed mosque
, filled with holiday worshippers. At least 50 people were killed, with over 100 injured.
In the 22 May 2008 Exeter bombing
, a nail bomb explosive was detonated in the toilets of Giraffe café in the Princesshay Shopping Centre
in Exeter
, Devon
. The homemade bomb exploded in the attacker's face as he was trying to ready it in the café toilet. Police then found another nail bomb inside the café after everybody had been evacuated.
On April 11, 2011
a nail bomb was detonated in Minsk
, Belarus
. 15 people were killed and 149 people were injured.
Explosive device
An explosive device is device that relies on the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Explosive devices have applications as demolition devices and as weapons in the military....
packed with nails to increase its wounding ability. The nails act as shrapnel
Fragmentation (weaponry)
Fragmentation is the process by which the casing of an artillery shell, bomb, grenade, etc. is shattered by the detonating high explosive filling. The correct technical terminology for these casing pieces is fragments , although shards or splinters can be used for non-preformed fragments...
, leading almost certainly to greater loss of life and injury in inhabited areas than the explosives alone would. The nail bomb is also a type of flechette
Flechette
A flechette is a pointed steel projectile, with a vaned tail for stable flight. The name comes from French , "little arrow" or "dart", and sometimes retains the acute accent in English: fléchette.-Bulk and artillery use:...
weapon. Such weapons use bits of shrapnel
Fragmentation (weaponry)
Fragmentation is the process by which the casing of an artillery shell, bomb, grenade, etc. is shattered by the detonating high explosive filling. The correct technical terminology for these casing pieces is fragments , although shards or splinters can be used for non-preformed fragments...
(steel balls
Ball (bearing)
Bearing balls are special highly spherical and smooth balls, most commonly used in ball bearings. The balls come in many different grades, as defined by the American Bearing Manufacturers Association , which defines the precision of the balls...
, nail heads, broken razors, darts
Darts
Darts is a form of throwing game where darts are thrown at a circular target fixed to a wall. Though various boards and games have been used in the past, the term "darts" usually now refers to a standardised game involving a specific board design and set of rules...
and bits of metal) to produce a large radius of destruction.
Nail bombs are often used by terrorists
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
, in particular by suicide bombers, since they cause large numbers of casualties when detonated in crowded places. Nail bombs can be detected via electromagnetic sensors and standard metal detectors.
Nail-bombing incidents
On March 6, 1970, in the Greenwich Village townhouse explosionGreenwich Village townhouse explosion
The Greenwich Village townhouse explosion was the premature detonation of a bomb as it was being assembled by members of the American radical left group, Weatherman – later renamed the Weather Underground – in the basement of a townhouse at 18 West 11th Street between Fifth Avenue and...
, three members of the Weather Underground
Weatherman (organization)
Weatherman, known colloquially as the Weathermen and later the Weather Underground Organization , was an American radical left organization. It originated in 1969 as a faction of Students for a Democratic Society composed for the most part of the national office leadership of SDS and their...
were killed in the accidental explosion of a nail bomb intended to be set off at a non-commissioned officers dance at the Fort Dix, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
Army base.
A number of nail bombings occurred during The Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, either by Republicans
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
or Loyalists
Ulster loyalism
Ulster loyalism is an ideology that is opposed to a united Ireland. It can mean either support for upholding Northern Ireland's status as a constituent part of the United Kingdom , support for Northern Ireland independence, or support for loyalist paramilitaries...
.
A number of nail-bombings occurred in 1999 when the Neo-Nazi David Copeland
David Copeland
David John Copeland is a former member of the British National Party and the National Socialist Movement, who became known as the "London Nail Bomber" after a 13-day bombing campaign in April 1999 aimed at London's black, Bangladeshi and gay communities.Over three successive weekends between 17...
planted several devices in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
targeted against ethnic minorities and homosexuals.
On 9 June 2004 a nail bomb was detonated in Cologne, Germany, by the Nazi terrorist group "National Socialist Underground" („Nationalsozialistischer Untergrund“) in a popular Turkish shopping quarter called "Little Istanbul", wounding 22 people and damaging several shops and parked cars. According to the magazine "Der Spiegel" the Nazi group claimed responsibility for the attack in a DVD found in the ruins of a house in Zwickau (D) that exploded on 4 November 2011.[4]
On December 31, 2005 an Indonesian marketplace was nail-bombed, and a second undetonated bomb was found nearby.
On June 28, 2007 a nail bomb that was assumed to be a part of a terror plot was discovered in a Mercedes
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
car and was consequently defused by police in the West End of London
West End of London
The West End of London is an area of central London, containing many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings, and entertainment . Use of the term began in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross...
. There was a second car bomb, further down the street that was apparently scheduled to detonate as evacuees and survivors fled down the street, to a nearby tube station. It is probable this bomb was also a nail/shrapnel device.
On December 21, 2007 a nail bomb was detonated in Sherpao
Sherpao
Sherpao is a small town located in Charsadda District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is located at 34°15'46N, 71° 41' 51EThere are elevan mohallahs in there akakhail mousakhail babukhail salimanzia choke ,mandozai,mian kalee, ali shah qallah, kolalabad,baigzai,yousafkhel, ada...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
by a suicide bomber. Detonation occurred inside a tightly packed mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
, filled with holiday worshippers. At least 50 people were killed, with over 100 injured.
In the 22 May 2008 Exeter bombing
22 May 2008 Exeter bombing
The Exeter bombing was a failed attack which happened on 22 May 2008, at the Giraffe cafe and restaurant in Princesshay, Exeter, United Kingdom. Nicky Reilly, 22, a Muslim convert from Plymouth, pleaded guilty to launching a failed suicide attack on 15 October...
, a nail bomb explosive was detonated in the toilets of Giraffe café in the Princesshay Shopping Centre
Princesshay
Princesshay is a shopping mall in the city of Exeter, Devon, England. It was built in the early 1950s to replace buildings that had been destroyed in the World War II Baedeker Blitz...
in Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
. The homemade bomb exploded in the attacker's face as he was trying to ready it in the café toilet. Police then found another nail bomb inside the café after everybody had been evacuated.
On April 11, 2011
2011 Minsk Metro bombing
The 2011 Minsk Metro bombing occurred on 11 April 2011 when at least 15 people were killed and more than two hundred were injured in an explosion on the Minsk Metro, Belarus. The explosion happened at the central Oktyabrskaya station at 17:55 local time....
a nail bomb was detonated in Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
, Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
. 15 people were killed and 149 people were injured.
See also
- Explosive beltExplosive beltAn explosive belt is an improvised explosive device, a belt or a vest packed with explosives and armed with a detonator, worn by suicide bombers...
- Improvised explosive deviceImprovised explosive deviceAn improvised explosive device , also known as a roadside bomb, is a homemade bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action...
- Molotov cocktailMolotov cocktailThe Molotov cocktail, also known as the petrol bomb, gasoline bomb, Molotov bomb, fire bottle, fire bomb, or simply Molotov, is a generic name used for a variety of improvised incendiary weapons...
- Pipe bombPipe bombA pipe bomb is an improvised explosive device, a tightly sealed section of pipe filled with an explosive material. The containment provided by the pipe means that simple low explosives can be used to produce a relatively large explosion, and the fragmentation of the pipe itself creates potentially...