Company Intelligence Support Teams (CoISTs)
"In counterinsurgency, killing the enemy is easy. Finding him is often nearly impossible. Intelligence and operations are complementary. Your operations will be intelligence driven, but intelligence will come mostly from your own operations, not as a "product" prepared and served by higher headquarters. So you must organize for intelligence. You will need a company S2 and intelligence section - including analysts." D.J. Kilcullen, "Twenty-Eight Articles", March 2006. 1.
The development of CoISTs (Company Intelligence Support Teams) was initiated by the need for actionable information to be analyzed at the company level in a timely manner. CoISTs facilitate the Commander’s decision making by analyzing the AO’s (Area of Operation) weather, enemy, terrain and the local population along with producing products in order to exploit the enemy’s vulnerabilities. It is the Commander’s responsibility to choose qualified Soldiers to be assigned to the CoIST in order for the team to be successful with their mission (Public Intelligence).
One example of how a CoIST can be arranged is by adding an Intelligence Analyst from the Battalion S2 shop in order for him/her to train non-MI Soldiers who have never conducted analysis or used any of the analyst programs. As a member of a CoIST, Soldiers will need to learn how to conduct time pattern and link analysis, develop target packets and conduct briefs and debriefs. Additionally, CoIST personnel will collect biometrics information, site exploitation, conduct Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield (IPB) for Company operations, and recommend company priority information requirements (PIRs) and specific information requirements (SIR) to the commander amongst other important duties (Public Intelligence). In order for a CoIST team to be successful, the adequate equipment must be provided and the team must be collocated with the Company leadership in order to maintain communication with both, the units on patrol and the higher headquarters. Typically, a CoIST will have access to multiple SECRET Internet Protocol Router (SIPR) computers, Non-Secure Internet Protocol Router (NIPR) computers, and Biometric Automated Toolset and Handheld Interagency Identity Detection Equipment to name a few. Systems used for processing intelligence include