Editing Assassination (section)

==Countermeasures==
===Early forms===
[[File:Sattar Bodyguard.JPG|thumb|upright=.5|A bodyguard who was killed by an [[improvised explosive device|IED]] during [[Abdul Sattar Abu Risha#Death|Sheik Abdul Sattar Abu Risha's assassination]] in 2007.]]
One of the earliest forms of defense against assassins was employing [[bodyguards]], who act as a shield for the potential target; keep a lookout for potential attackers, sometimes in advance, such as on a parade route; and putting themselves in harm's way, both by simple presence, showing that physical force is available to protect the target,<ref name="SS">''[http://www.secretservice.gov/ntac/ntac_jfs.pdf Assassination in the United States: An Operational Study]'' – Fein, Robert A. & Vossekuil, Brian, ''[[Journal of Forensic Sciences]]'', Volume 44, Number 2, March 1999. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060620171200/http://www.secretservice.gov/ntac/ntac_jfs.pdf |date=June 20, 2006}}</ref><ref>[https://www.archives.gov/research/jfk/warren-commission-report/appendix7.html Lincoln] – Appendix 7, Report of the President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, 1964</ref> and by shielding the target if any attack occurs. To neutralize an attacker, bodyguards are typically armed as much as legal and practical concerns permit.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

Notable examples of bodyguards include the Roman [[Praetorian Guard]] or the Ottoman [[Janissary|Janissaries]], but in both cases, the protectors sometimes became assassins themselves, exploiting their power to make the [[head of state]] a virtual hostage or killing the very leaders whom they were supposed to protect. The loyalty of individual bodyguards is an important question as well, especially for leaders who oversee states with strong ethnic or religious divisions. Failure to realize such divided loyalties allowed the assassination of Indian Prime Minister [[Indira Gandhi]], who was assassinated by two [[Sikh]] bodyguards in 1984.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}<ref>Deol, H. (2000). Religion and nationalism in India: The case of the Punjab (1st ed.). Routledge, 92-109. doi: 10.4324/9780203402269</ref>

The bodyguard function was often executed by the leader's most loyal warriors, and it was extremely effective throughout most of early human history, which led assassins to attempt stealthy means, such as [[poison]], whose risk was reduced by having [[food taster|another person taste the leader's food]] first.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

===Modern strategies===
[[File:Reagan assassination attempt 4 crop.jpg|thumb|left|[[Attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan|Assassination attempt]] on President [[Ronald Reagan]]]]
With the advent of gunpowder, ranged assassination via bombs or firearms became possible. One of the first reactions was simply to increase the guard, creating what at times might seem a small army trailing every leader. Another was to begin clearing large areas whenever a leader was present to the point that entire sections of a city might be shut down.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

As the 20th century dawned, the prevalence and capability of assassins grew quickly, as did measures to protect against them. For the first time, [[armored car (VIP)|armored cars or limousines]] were put into service for safer transport, with modern versions virtually invulnerable to [[small arms]] fire, smaller bombs and [[land mine|mines]].<ref>''[http://www.alpha-armouring.com/bulletproof/cars.php How to choose the appropriate bulletproof cars]'' (from Alpha-armouring.com website, includes examples of protection levels available) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070103071805/http://www.alpha-armouring.com/bulletproof/cars.php |date=January 3, 2007 }}</ref> [[Bulletproof vests]] also began to be used, but since they were of limited utility, restricting movement and leaving the head unprotected, they tended to be worn only during high-profile public events, if at all.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

Access to famous people also became more and more restricted;<ref name="Report">[https://www.archives.gov/research/jfk/warren-commission-report/appendix7.html The Need For Protection Further Demonstrated] – Appendix 7, Report of the President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, 1964</ref> potential visitors would be forced through numerous different checks before being granted access to the official in question, and as communication became better and information technology more prevalent, it has become all but impossible for a would-be killer to get close enough to the personage at work or in private life to effect an attempt on their life, especially with the common use of [[metal detector|metal]] and [[Bomb disposal|bomb detectors]].

Most modern assassinations have been committed either during a public performance or during transport, both because of weaker security and security lapses, such as with U.S. President [[John F. Kennedy]] and former Pakistani Prime Minister [[Benazir Bhutto]], or as part of a coup d'état in which security is either overwhelmed or completely removed, such as with [[Democratic Republic of the Congo|Congolese]] Prime Minister [[Patrice Lumumba]].{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

[[File:Popemobil Mai 2007.jpg|thumb|[[Pope Benedict XVI]] in a modified [[Mercedes-Benz M-Class]] [[Popemobile]] in São Paulo, Brazil]]
The methods used for protection by famous people have sometimes evoked negative reactions by the public, with some resenting the separation from their officials or major figures. One example might be traveling in a car protected by a bubble of clear [[bulletproof glass]], such as the [[MRAP]]-like [[Popemobile]] of [[Pope John Paul II]], built following an attempt at his life. Politicians often resent the need for separation and sometimes send their bodyguards away from them for personal or publicity reasons. US President [[William McKinley]] did so at the public reception in which he was assassinated.<ref name="Report"/>

Other potential targets go into seclusion and are rarely heard from or seen in public, such as writer [[Salman Rushdie]]. A related form of protection is the use of [[Political decoy|body doubles]], people with similar builds to those they are expected to impersonate. These people are then [[makeup|made up]] and, in some cases, undergo [[plastic surgery]] to look like the target, with the body double then taking the place of the person in high-risk situations. According to Joe R. Reeder, Under Secretary of the Army from 1993 to 1997, [[Fidel Castro]] used body doubles.<ref name="FOX">{{cite news |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/its-bin-laden-or-is-it |title=It's Bin Laden&nbsp;... or Is It? |publisher=[[Fox News]] |date=December 20, 2001 |first=Catherine |last=Donaldson-Evans |access-date=December 8, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120805130250/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,41210,00.html |archive-date=August 5, 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[US Secret Service]] protective agents receive training in the psychology of assassins.<ref>{{cite news |first=Scott |last=Pelley |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mind-of-the-assassin-14-03-2000/ |title=Mind of the Assassin |publisher= CBS 60&nbsp;Minutes II |date=August 15, 2000 |access-date= March 30, 2010}}</ref>