Land of Promise (36 page)

Illum: Short for illumination.

Imam
: An Islamic leadership position. It is most commonly in the context of a worship leader of a mosque and Muslim community by Sunni Muslims. In this context, Imams may lead Islamic worship services, serve as community leaders, and provide religious guidance. For Shi’a Muslims, the Imam has a more central meaning and role in Islam through the concept of
Imamah
, the term is only applicable to those members of the house of the prophet
ahl al-Bayt
, designated as infallibles. Imam may also be used in the form of a title for renowned Muslim scholars.

IL-76: The Ilyushin Il-76 (NATO reporting name: Candid) is a multi-purpose four-engine strategic airlift jest designed by the Ilyushin Design Bureau. It was designed for delivering heavy machinery to remote, poorly served areas of the USSR. Military versions of the Il-76 have seen widespread use in Europe, Asia and Africa. The Il-76 has seen extensive service as a commercial freighter for ramp-delivered cargo, especially for outsized or heavy items unable to be otherwise carried. It has also been used as emergency response transport for civilian evacuations as well as for humanitarian/disaster relief aid around the world. Because of its ability to operate from unpaved runways, it has been useful in undeveloped areas. (WP)

IMP: Individual Meal Pack. Canada’s standard filed ration containing precooked entree packed in heavy-duty plastic-foil retort pouch. The equivalent of a U.S. military Meal, Ready to Eat (MRE).

INDEP:
Industrias de Defesa de Portugal
. See also: FMP.

INFN:
Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare
.

Intel: Slang shorthand for intelligence.

INTERPOL: The International Criminal Police Organization. Headquartered in Lyon, France.

Invisible Web: See Deep Web.

IPSC: International Practical Shooting Confederation. The IPSC is the governing body for combat pistol shooting competition, worldwide.

IR: Depending on context, Ilemi Republic, Infrared or Intelligence Requirement.

IRC: International Red Cross

IRDF: Ilemi Republic Defense Force. This acronym is spoken: “Ear-Diff.”

IRDF Cadre: The small full-time training and intelligence staff of the Ilemi Republic Defense Force.

Constitutionally limited to no more than 300 members, except in times of declared war.

IRISS: c. (Fictional.)

IRST: Infrared Search and Track.

IS: Islamic State.

ISACS: International Small Arm Control Standards.

Isher Trading Company: A subsidiary of GlobalMAP, headquartered in Solus Christus, primarily involved in acquiring weapons, aircraft, and military sensors. (Fictional.)

ISIL: See ISIS.

ISIS: Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham. Also sometimes referred to as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. (ISIL.) Also known by the Arabic acronym
Daʿish
.

ISIS:

I-SWAN: Ilemi Secure Wide Area Network. (Fictional.) See also: Deep Web.

IT: Information Technology.

ITAR: International Tariff in Arms Regulations. This US law governs the permanent and temporary export of defense related goods. ITAR also operates to prohibit the “Retransfer” (also called “Re-export”) of items on the USML by foreigners unless it is specifically authorized under a relevant Export Authorization. See also: EAR, ECCN, USML, and CCL.

IV: Intravenous.

IRVEF: Ilemi Republic Voluntary Educational Fund. (Fictional.)

Janjaweed: Islamic terrorists that operate in Darfur, western Sudan, and eastern Chad, often on horseback. The Janjaweed comprised Sudanese Arab tribes, the core of whom are
Guhayna
(camel herdsmen). They also recruit
Lambo
from the
Baggara
(cattle herdsmen) people.

Jaumann Shell: Ferrite particles of various sizes suspended in a liquid RAM coating, to reduce an aircraft’s radar return. See also: RAM and SRR.

JI: Jemaah Islamiya.

JIT: Just In Time.

Jihad
: A religious duty of Muslims that literally means “struggle.” Generally it is seen as a holy war against non-Muslims.

Jizya
: A special tax levied by some Islamic governments on unbelievers.

JP4: Jet Propellant Four, an aviation fuel.

JP5: Jet Propellant Five, an aviation fuel.

JTH: Juba Teaching Hospital.

K: Depending on context: Kilo (for 1,000) or
Kurz
(German for short.)

Kalashnikov: See AK.

Kamaz: A Russian truck manufacturer, located on the Kama River. (
Kam
skiy
a
vtomobilny
z
avod
that was at one time laid out and equipped with tooling supplied by Ford Motor Company.

Kaserne
: A military barracks. (Originally a German, word, but also used by other armies.)

KDF: Kenya Defence Forces.

Keffiyeh
: The Arabic word for headscarf. Worn as neck scarves by the IRDF.

Kel-Tec: A Florida gun manufacturer specializing in polymer frame guns.

Kevlar: The material used in most body army and ballistic helmets. “Kevlar” is also the nickname for the standard U.S. Army helmet.

KG, Kg, or kg: Kilogram.

KIA: Killed in Action.

Kibbutz
: a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. In more recent years farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises.
Kibbutzim
began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism. In recent decades, some
kibbutzim
have been privatized and changes have been made in the communal lifestyle. A member of a
kibbutz
is called a
kibbutznik
.

In 2010, there were 270
kibbutzim
in Israel. Their factories and farms account for 9% of Israel’s industrial output, worth US$8 billion, and 40% of its agricultural output, worth over $1.7 billion. Some
Kibbutzim
had also developed substantial high-tech and military industries. (WP.)

Kibbutznik
: See
Kibbutz.

Kiswahili: A Bantu language and the mother tongue of the Swahili people, spoken widely in Eastern Africa.

Kit: British slang for field gear.

KJV: King James Version of the Bible.

Klick: Slang for kilometer.

KPH: Kilometers Per Hour.

Komatsu: A Japanese manufacturer of heavy construction equipment, best known in western countries for their excavators.

Koppie
: A hill. (From Afrikaans, a derivation of the Dutch word
Kopje
.)

KP: Kitchen Police or “Keep Peeling.”

Kraal
: Afrikaans for corral.

Kravi
: Hebrew for combat.

Krav Maga: A modern hybrid martial art developed by Israeli Defense Forces that merges specific techniques from Aikido, Boxing, Combat Sambo, Grappling, Judo, Jujitsu, Muay Thai, and Wrestling. The Hebrew words
Krav
and
Maga
can be translated as “combat” and “contact.”

Krinkov: A compact folding-stock version of the Kalashnikov rifle. (Also made in a pistol version, for the commercial export market.)

KRPH: Kim Rhee Photovoltaics and Hydrogen Group. (Fictional.)

Kuffar
: The Arabic word for Infidel.

L1A1: The British army version of the FN/FAL, made to inch measurements.

Laager
: A defensive encampment. An Afrikaans word.

Land Nav: Short for Land Navigation.

LAR-8: A variant of the AR-10 rifle that accepts FN/FAL or L1A1 magazines.

Lat/Long: Shorthand for Latitude and Longitude. See also: GPS.

LAW: Light Antitank Weapon.

LC-1: Load Carrying, Type 1. (U.S. Army Load Bearing Equipment, circa 1970s to 1990s.)

LDS: The Latter Day Saints, commonly called the Mormons. (Flawed doctrine, great preparedness.)

LED: Light Emitting Diode.

Levant: A geographical term referring to a large area in Southwest Asia bounded by the Taurus Mountains of Anatolia in the North, the Mediterranean Sea in the west, and the north Arabian Desert and Mesopotamia in the east. The Levant does not include Anatolia (although at times Cilicia may be included), the Caucasus Mountains, or any part of the Arabian Peninsula proper. The Sinai Peninsula is sometimes included, though more considered an intermediate, peripheral or marginal area forming a land bridge between the Levant and northern Egypt. (WP)

LGBTT2QQAAIIPDPPANGNAA: Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Transsexual Two-Spirit Queer Questioning Intersex Intergender Asexual Allies Pansexual Demisexual Polysexual Polyamorous Androgynous Neutrois Gender Neutral and Animal Amorous. (Fictional future expansion of a currently growing acronym.)

LIDAR: A remote sensing technology that measures distance by illuminating a target with a laser and analyzing the reflected light. Although spuriously thought by some to be an acronym of Light Detection And Ranging, the term LIDAR was actually created as a portmanteau of “light” and “radar”. (WP.)

LINAC: Linear accelerator. A high energy device for generating particle beams.

LLDR: Lightweight Laser Designator Rangefinder.

LNGS:
Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso
.

LO: Low observable (aka Stealth.) See also: RAM and RCS.

LOA: Letter of Agreement.

LOC: Letter of Credit.

Loki: Slang contraction for the town name Lokichoggio—a town that is an international aid distribution center in western Kenya.

LP: Liquid Propane.

LPCs: Leather Personnel Carriers.

LP/OP: Listening Post/Observation Post.

LRRP: Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol. (Spoken “Lurp.”)

LWR: Laser Warning Receiver. See also: RWR.

LZ: Landing Zone.

M1 Abrams: The United States’ current main battle tank, with a 120mm cannon (“main gun”).

M1A: The civilian (semiauto only) version of the U.S. Army M14 7.62mm NATO rifle.

M1911: The Model 1911 Colt semiauto pistol (and clones thereof), usually chambered in .45 ACP.

M2 Browning: A .50 caliber belt-fed machinegun used for both direct fire on the ground and for anti-aircraft fire.

M4: The U.S. Army–issue 5.56mm NATO selective-fire carbine. (A shorter version of the M16, with a 14.5-inch barrel and collapsing stock.) Earlier-issue M16 carbine variants had designations such as XM177E2 and CAR-15. Civilian semiauto-only variants often have these same designations, or are called “M4geries.”

M4gery: A civilian semiauto-only version of an M4 Carbine, with a sixteen-inch barrel instead of the military 14.5-inch barrel.

M9: The U.S. Army–issue version of the Beretta M92 semiauto 9mm pistol.

M14: The U.S. Army–issue 7.62mm NATO selective-fire battle rifle. These rifles are still issued in small numbers, primarily to designated marksmen. The civilian semiauto-only equivalent of the M14 is called the M1A.

M16: The U.S. Army–issue 5.56mm NATO selective-fire battle rifle. The current standard variant is the M16A2 that has improved sight and three-shot burst control. See also: M4.

M60: The obsolete U.S. Army–issue 7.62mm NATO belt-fed light machinegun that utilized some design elements of the German MG-42.

M151 Protector: See Protector.

M2: The Browning .50 Caliber Machinegun. Sometimes called by the nickname “Ma Deuce.”

M240: The US military variant of the 7.62mm NATO FN-MAG light machinegun. See also: FN-MAG.

M249: The US military variant of the 5.56mm NATO FN Minimi light machinegun.

M&A: Mergers & Acquisitions.

Maaminim
: Hebrew word for believers (plural).

MAC Address: Media Access Control Address. A unique identifier assigned to network interfaces for communications on the physical network segment. MAC addresses are used as a network address for most IEEE 802 network technologies, including Ethernet and WiFi. Logically, MAC addresses are used in the media access control protocol sublayer of the OSI reference model. MAC addresses are most often assigned by the manufacturer of a network interface controller (NIC) and are stored in its hardware, such as the card’s read-only memory or some other firmware mechanism. If assigned by the manufacturer, a MAC address usually encodes the manufacturer’s registered identification number and may be referred to as the burned-in address (BIA). It may also be known as an Ethernet hardware address (EHA), hardware address or physical address. This can be contrasted to a programmed address, where the host device issues commands to the NIC to use an arbitrary address. (WP.)

Madrasa
: The Arabic word for an educational institution, whether secular or religious. In the West, the word usually refers to a specific type of religious school or college for the study of the Islamic religion, though this may not be the only subject studied. (WP.)

Ma Deuce: See M2.

Mag: Slang contraction for Magazine.

MAG: See FN-MAG.

MAG-58: See FN-MAG.

Magen David Adom
: See MDA.

Mag-Lite: A popular American brand of sturdy flashlights with a machined aluminum casing.

Mahdi
: In Islamic eschatology, the
Mahdi
(“Guided One”) is the prophesied redeemer of Islam who will rule for seven, nine, or nineteen years (according to differing interpretations) before the Day of Judgment (
yawm al-qiyamah
-- literally, the Day of Resurrection) and will rid the world of evil. (WP) See also: Twelver.

Mahdists: Adherents of the
Mahdi
.

Mahram
: The male guard for any woman leaving their home, in strict Sharia-controlled regions.

MAM: Military Age Male.

Mamba: A South African mine-proof wheeled APC that can carry ten troops. This model was the predecessor of the RG-31 Nyala. Also a greatly feared venomous African snake.

MAP: Mergers and Acquisitions Partners. See GlobalMAP.