It is open season on police with criminals emboldened by the knowledge that the force is poorly trained and equipped and lacks information about possible threats. Six police officers have been killed in the past week and six seriously injured.Four of them were shot and wounded on Sunday in attacks in Gauteng and Cape Town.Both metro policemen and members of the SA Police Service are under attack.So far this year 25 police officers have been killed on duty and 28 while off duty.President Jacob Zuma has condemned the killings, saying: "You could almost think that there is war, where you could count so many people who are being killed. I think it indicates the abnormality of the security situation."Institute for Security Studies policing expert Johan Burger said the sudden "surge" in attacks was a culmination of factors, including criminals becoming more brazen and robberies more violent."South Africa's aggravated robbery rate has increased by 18% over the last two financial years."Despite denials by the police that their crime intelligence capabilities were functioning, information from the police's last three annual reports showed a 49% reduction in "intelligence products" at station level.Burger said intelligence products were crime-threat analyses meant to shape how police conduct operations and patrols. "It means that crime intelligence, which is meant to provide officers on the ground with knowledge of threats, is not functioning optimally. The poorer the crime intelligence the greater the risk to police."Burger said a new climate of danger for police had been created, with their training inadequate to meet the threat."In 2011, then police minister Nathi Mthethwa announced a 10- point plan to improve police safety through better equipment and training, but we have no idea whether the plan has been acted on,'' he said."If you look at the attacks, police are allowing themselves to be placed in situations where they take unnecessary risks, which boils down to a lack of training. They are outnumbered and outgunned."Police officers killed in the past week include:Witbank policeman Sergeant Johny Marshall was stabbed to death near a taxi rank on Sunday;A Johannesburg policeman was killed in Jeppestown on Friday;A Vosloorus, Ekurhuleni, policeman was shot dead on Thursday;A policeman in Temba, north of Pretoria, was killed on Wednesday;A Cape Town-based Hawks officer was killed while changing a car tyre on the N2 highway on Wednesday.Andre Pretorius, of the Firearms Proficiency Coucil of South Africa, who sits on the official police standards-generating body but has never been invited to a single meeting, said the situation was grave."The police do their own firearm-training quality assurance with their own standards, which they created, which they do their own evaluations with."The police say their standards are higher educationally, yet their shooting assessment qualification level is considerably lower and easier to pass, with the police deciding the pass mark."The pass mark varied greatly from day to day.Pretorius said the police's compulsory shooting exercises were also not linked to a skill level."Some [officers] have excellent firearm skills, but others, who receive the exact same certification, have dismal skill levels. You cannot tell the difference from the certification."The majority of criminals know that if they challenge the average police officer they will win."Pretorius said people assumed officers were given tactical training, "but the average officer is not at the level of being properly tactically trained".Police spokesman Brigadier Vish Naidoo said in keeping with the 10-point plan a police safety strategy was developed and was being implemented.About police training he said: "We set minimum standards. Our training is not in accordance with international standards, it is higher, with expectations for passing greater."It is compulsory for operational members to go annually on refresher courses, which include both physical and shooting exercises. These courses include both week-long and one-day courses, with members assessed on various operational firearms."Naidoo said members who failed their firearm competency assessments had to repeat them until they passed.But a police firearms training assessment officer said members were failing their annual assessments dismally.He said station members were a problem."They are failing various types of firearms assessments ."Under some assessments of permanent members we have failure rates of more than 60%."With the reservists, it's even worse. It is so bad that reservists who fail are going onto the streets with their private firearms because they failed their state firearm assessments."..