The U.S. Marines are going to have a new toy according to the Marine Corps Times. But instead of having the bestest weapon to blast the enemies to kingdom come, what they are going to get is a laser dazzler, which will be a part of their non-lethal kit that will be issued out. It is designed to warn or hail people in a controlled area.

It is what the USMC calls the Ocular Interruption System (OIS) which is:

…employed by our forces across the ROMO to provide a visual warning to personnel approaching lethal force authorized zones. The OIS will allow Marines engaged in combat, stability and security, and force protection operations to employ an intense visual cueing device to hail and warn personnel and vehicle operators at safe standoff distances.

The effective range of the OIS and its ability to automatically regulate dazzling laser energy to keep it below hazardous levels will allow us to challenge potential threats at greater distances than currently available while minimizing fatalities and limiting collateral damage.

So why would the USMC resort to a laser dazzler?  The U.S. Military encountered problems in manning checkpoints during their occupation of Iraq, perhaps due to language and cultural differences, the Iraqis didn't slow down and even warning shots were insufficient to make them stop that there were incidents of unarmed locals being shot by U.S. soldiers for failing to stop at checkpoints. In 2006, they resorted to using green laser dazzlers mounted on M4 rifles that would cause temporary blindness when shone on those approaching checkpoints who initially failed to follow verbal commands to stop. That temporary blindness would surely make anyone stop.

The 5-year, US$49 million contract was awarded to Alfalight Inc., and B.E. Meyer & Co., Inc. with the device that will be produced and issued to the Marines will be the Glare Recoil which B.E. Meyer says is the "most advanced weapon-mounted hail and warning laser system available." It also has an auto-power limiting system that would prevent causing any injury to the eye.

The OIS will be part of the Escalation of Force Mission Module Kits that will be issued to the Marines. The rest of the kit are all non-lethal devices for crowd control and safety ranging from riot control kit, a translation device, restraints, speakers, metal detectors, and forensic tools. The first OIS Dazzlers are expected to be delivered by October.