In Afghanistan IEDs have so demoralised the Brits and American troops that there is tremendous fear of putting boots on the ground. Every time the coalition comes up with an high tech solution for the IEDs the taliban finds a low tech way around it.
Now there is a concerted high tech effort to go after the network of people who finance and support the IEDS. I hope this makes an effective difference.
http://journey-world.com/2011/12/attacking-the-network/