Keep on Truckin’: The Toyota Hilux

We explore the modern history of putting big guns on wheels, then dive into the history of Chad and its border dispute with Libya to learn how a humble pickup truck became a quintessential weapon of war.

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Image: A Nigerien military convoy on a counter-terrorism patrol in the Sahara Desert (UNICEF)

Blood Work is a Scam Goldin ProductionThis episode was produced by Thomas O’MahonyOur theme song is ‘Dream Weapon’ by Genghis TronOur artwork is provided courtesy of KT Kobel

THIS WEEK IN VIOLENCE: Tatmadaw’s Shiny Happy People Committee for Lo-Fi Beats to Study ToALSO AVAILABLE IN AUDIOThis week, we’re in Southeast Asia, jumping just over Thailand’s north-western border to Myanmar, where the ongoing civil war between the country’s military dictatorship and numerous armed groups across the country is showing slithers of hope that a resolution might be on the horizon, nestled amidst a morass of repression and violence which has persisted, practically uninterrupted, for over sixty years.

Sources:

Mario J. Azevedo (1998), Roots of Violence: A History of War in ChadBBC News (July, 2006), ‘Profile: Chad's Hissene Habre’, available at BBC NewsAntony Beevor (2006), The Battle for Spain: The Spanish Civil War 1936-1939Michelle L. Burgis (2009), Boundaries of Discourse in the International Court of Justice: Mapping Arguments in Arab Territorial DisputesCarla Chahrour (October, 2020), ‘The arrival of Toyota in Saudi Arabia’, available at Arab News JapanMichael Ellmer (April, 2021), ‘The Great Toyota War: Birthplace of the Technical’, available at Grey DynamicsHuman Rights Watch (September, 2005), ‘“Africa's Pinochet” Faces Extradition and Trial for Crimes Against Humanity’, available at Human Rights WatchHuman Rights Watch (June, 2016), ‘Enabling a Dictator: The United States and Chad’s Hissène Habré 1982-1990’, available at Human Rights WatchFrank Jacobs (November, 2011), ‘The World’s Largest Sandbox’, The New York Times, available at The New York Times ArchiveRoy May (1988), ‘Internal Dimensions of Warfare in Chad’, Cambridge Antropology (13:2), pp. 17-27Jack Mulcaire (February, 2014), ‘The Pickup Truck Era of Warfare’, available at War on the RocksLe Monde (March, 1987), ‘TCHAD: le conflit avec la Libye Les nouvelles inquiétudes de Paris et de N'Djamena’, available at archive.todayLe Monde (March, 1987), ‘TCHAD: N'Djamena affirme que 1 269 soldats libyens ont été tués à Ouadi-Doum’, available at archive.todayLeigh Neville (2018), Technicals: Non-Standard Tactical Vehicles from the Great Toyota War to Modern Special ForcesLodi News-Sentinel (April, 1987), ‘How Libya lost the battle for Wadi Doum’, available via Google NewsLos Angeles Times (April, 1987), ‘Chad Troops Used Pickup Trucks to Foil Libyan Tanks’, available at Los Angeles Times ArchivesLRDG, Long Range Desert Group, available at lrdg.hedgewisch.net

Michael Maren (1997), The Road to Hell: The Ravaging Effects of Foreign Aid and International CharitySam C. Nolutshungu (1996), Limits of Anarchy: Intervention and State Formation in ChadPierre Péan (March, 2001), ‘Les preuves trafiquées du terrorisme libyen’, Le Monde Diplomatique, available at archive.todayBryan Perret (April, 1979), ‘Ford Model T Patrol Car’, Airfix Magazine, available at Landships IIKenneth M. Pollack (2002), Arabs at War: Military Effectiveness, 1948-1991Kenneth M. Pollack (2019), Armies of Sand: The Past, Present, and Future of Arab Military EffectivenessNathaniel K. Powell (2021), France’s Wars in Chad: Military Intervention and Decolonization in AfricaReuters (March, 1987), ‘Chad is Said to Capture Strategic Air Base’, The New York Times, available via archive.todayGeoff Simons (2003), Libya and the West: From Independence to LockerbieRavi Somaiya (October, 2010), ‘Why Rebel Groups Love the Toyota Hilux’, available at NewsweekChandra Lekha Sriram (Febru