Operation Urban Warrior

It was developed in the mid-1990s by the Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory partly in response to growing problem on inner-city fighting, and especially made urgent following the Battle of Mogadishu in 1993.

[2] The concern that Marines would be made responsible for humanitarian assistance, as evidenced by the Bosnian War, was part of the original planning of the program.

They know that cities, with their narrow streets, confusing layout and large number of civilian non-combatants, place limits on our technological superiority and especially our use of firepower.

We have to develop technologies that allow us to win while minimizing collateral damage.The program has been called one of the most important in the United States Armed Forces.

Lines of approach through cities tend to be long and narrow, with sharp turns, civilians, street traffic and local commerce.

[citation needed] Inhabitants may have any of a huge number of possible reactions, including anger, resentment, disrespect, and a strong potential for spontaneous protest, disorder, and uninitiated response.

History records many military operations involving cities, of which a large number degenerated into torturous situations with massive casualties.

Doing so supposedly involves gaining the support and trust of the local population by engaging in humanitarian efforts, a project the Marine Corps has more recently[when?]

[citation needed] After original plans to use the San Francisco Presidio were rejected by the National Park Service[5] based on the size of the spectacle and its inherent environmental damage, and a trial run at the Naval Postgraduate School beach in Monterey, California,[6][7] Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown and Alameda Mayor Ralph Appezzato welcomed the Marines to use their cities as a proving ground.