May 23, 2003

By Paul Sperry
© 2003 WorldNetDaily.com

WASHINGTON -- As the Pentagon deploys more Stinger missiles around its perimeter to guard against new al-Qaida threats, an Army fort out West plans to issue axes to beef up security.

Actually, axes isn't quite accurate. Some sentries at Fort Huachuca in Arizona will only get the wooden part of the ax -- sans blade.

"No firearms for sentry duty. They get ax handles!" said a U.S. official, who finds the plan ridiculous.

Indeed, a post-wide memo, "Operations Order for Force Protection Delta Procedures," advises: "Soldiers ... will be issued a flashlight, batteries and an ax handle to be used in case of an emergency."

The March 6 memo obtained by WorldNetDaily adds: "Any detained personnel will be controlled by the mere threat of being struck by a wooden ax handle."

Another memo, distributed March 17 under the subject line, "FP Con Delta Reactive Procedures," details equipment for guards at the fort.

"Guards: Battle Dress Uniform (BDU), sleeves down, Kevlar, LBE [load-bearing equipment], weather appropriate over garment, and axe handle club," it states.

A spokesman at Fort Belvoir here, where all guards are issued firearms, chuckled at the ax-handle contingency at Fort Huachuca. "I've never heard of such a thing," Don Carr said.

A spokeswoman at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, also was amused, saying guards there always carry loaded weapons.

A spokesman at the Department of Army here was equally incredulous.

"I'm not aware of any policy regarding ax handles, and I have no idea why any post would have such a policy," said Army Maj. Chris Conway.

He notes that fort security is the responsibility of each fort commander. "It's not a cookie-cutter thing," Conway said.

Fort Huachuca, home to a U.S. Army Intelligence Center unit, will not issue the ax handles unless there is a major event of stateside terrorism, which would trigger the security upgrade to Delta, the highest warning level.

The U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency here, however, has raised its warning recommendation for all military facilities to Delta, after al-Qaida leaders this week issued threats against U.S. military installations.

"We have not changed our plans," said Fort Huachuca spokeswoman Tanja Linton. "We're at Bravo-plus."

In response to terror warnings, commanders can raise force-protection levels at their bases at Alpha, Bravo, Charlie or Delta.

The Pentagon is at Charlie.