[Jerusalem Post] Jonathan Spyer - In the event of a major IDF incursion into Gaza, Hamas would seek to maintain a steady rain of rockets on Israeli communities around the Strip and would try to inflict losses on IDF ground forces. To make this possible, Hamas is feverishly training as well as acquiring relevant weapons systems of a far superior quality. These include a wire-guided anti-tank missile, probably the AT-3 Sagger, and additional anti-tank guided missiles: the AT-4 Spigot, the tripod-fired AT-5 Spandrel and the shoulder-fired AT-14 Spriggan - all useful against armor at ranges of several kilometers. In addition, Hamas is thought to have large numbers of RPG-29 Vampir handheld anti-tank grenade launchers with a range of 500 meters, which are capable of penetrating reactive armor and are considered far superior to the RPG 7 systems used in the past. Hamas is also developing improvised explosive devices, using an Iranian-developed, locally-produced system that it says can penetrate 20 cm. of steel. Furthermore, extensive recruitment has been taking place. Hamas claims to have around 20,000 men under arms.
2008-07-04 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive