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Why is the sniper the only character that the author describes in great detail?

I think one reason for describing only the Republican sniper in great detail is because he is the story's protagonist.  Authors generally spend more time describing their main character because readers will spend the most time with that character.  Greater detail allows readers to feel more familiar with the character.  


Additionally, by not describing the other characters in detail, readers essentially feel about them the same way that the protagonist feels about them.  They are targets.  It doesn't matter what they look like, who they are, or what they feel.  They are enemy combatants, and they need to die.  By not describing them in detail, readers are able to have a cold detachment from them.  That's the attitude that the protagonist has about them.  We feel and sympathize with the sniper because we feel we know him better than the other characters.  

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