# We're shooting at our allies and they're shooting back.

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-shooting-at-our-allies-and-theyre-shooting-back/465203>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [September 25, 2008, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-shooting-at-our-allies-and-theyre-shooting-back/465203 "2008-09-25T19:38:02Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-shooting-at-our-allies-and-theyre-shooting-back/465203/1 "2008-09-25T19:38:02Z")

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There have been at least a half dozen strikes by predator aircraft inside Pakistan since Sept. 1st; these strikes are considered to be a violation of Pakistani sovereignty by the Pakistanis. In fact, the Pakistanis have ordered their forces to fire upon American aircraft and they have done so.

My question is twofold: Has there ever been a precedent, where allies are firing upon each other _under orders_? i.e not ‘friendly fire’

How long can this go on before we have an actual ‘blue on blue’ firefight?

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**Author:** ![2nd\_Law](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/f475e1/32.png) [@2nd\_Law](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2nd_Law)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-shooting-at-our-allies-and-theyre-shooting-back/465203/2 "2008-09-25T20:09:38Z")

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> [@chacoguy420](#):
>
> How long can this go on before we have an actual ‘blue on blue’ firefight?

Not too long, apparently…

[Pakistani and American Troops Exchange Fire](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/26/world/asia/26military.html?hp)

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**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2008, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-shooting-at-our-allies-and-theyre-shooting-back/465203/3 "2008-09-25T23:28:01Z")

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> [@2nd\_Law](#):
>
> Not too long, apparently…
> 
> [Pakistani and American Troops Exchange Fire](http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/26/world/asia/26military.html?hp)

Another story:  
[Pakistani troops fire on US helicopters at border](http://news.yahoo.com/story//ap/20080925/ap_on_re_as/as_pakistan_us_4)

> [@](#):
>
> U.S. Central Command spokesman Rear Adm. Greg Smith said the helicopters had been escorting U.S. troops and Afghan border police. When the helicopters were fired on, the ground forces fired rounds meant not to hit the Pakistani troops, but “to make certain that they realized they should stop shooting,” Smith said from Centcom headquarters in Florida.

This sounds like the tactics that the Georgians employed on the Russians in Ossetia a few weeks back.