(Spectator-UK) Jake Wallis Simons - Most people appreciate that it is in Britain's national interest to have a close relationship with Israel. Both Britain and Israel face threats from Islamist terrorists, and intelligence sharing has saved lives in both countries. In 2015, Mossad helped British police uncover a bomb factory in northwest London, where officers recovered three tons of ammonium nitrate. Mossad's former deputy director, Ram Ben-Barak, disclosed to me recently that an Israeli air strike on Syria's secret nuclear reactor in 2007 came after a tip-off from British spies. Based on Elbit's Hermes 450 drone, London's Watchkeeper surveillance UAVs have saved countless British lives in Afghanistan. Elbit has long shared its expertise with British forces in the provision of battle management systems - software that allows combat information to be instantly shared across a fighting force. As the British Army seeks to modernize, there are many lessons to be learned from the IDF, a democratic military machine that relies heavily on technology to engage enemies on various fronts and in diverse contexts.
2020-12-14 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive