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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Martial law declared in the North |
| 2006-07-16 |
| Israel's war with Hizbullah intensified over the weekend as Katyusha rockets rained down on northern Israel, prompting the IDF to deploy Patriot missile batteries outside Haifa and Defense Minister Amir Peretz to declare martial law throughout the North. Meanwhile. a Katyusha rocket warning system is due to be activated in southern Haifa on Sunday, Home Front Commander Yitzhak Gershon said on Saturday night. The system will sound the alarm a minute before the rockets hit the ground in order for residents to seek shelter. Residents who had previously been asked not to leave their houses are requested to stay in the vicinity of shelters despite the introduction of the warning system. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #12 eLarson: Yep, they can hit mortar, rocket & arty with very accurate counterbattery. And have been. That's where most of the 'civilian' casualties in Lebanon have probably been coming from - counterbattery hits on launchers in family courtyards etc. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2006-07-16 20:50 |
| #11 Speaking of mortar... doesn't Israel have the system that tracks them back to their source for, er, disposal of the source? |
| Posted by: eLarson 2006-07-16 12:36 |
| #10 Thanks Frank - I note the range is "classified", but since it's a Gatling gun (albeit at the top of the chart, #1 hit parade type) I suppose it all comes down to physics. Might as well invite any gunnies into the discussion - is there an existing weapon with the range to hit a mid flight projectile - at whatever trajectory - from the mortar to the katyusha? Israel's northern border is so short (compared to, say, Korea) is it practical (yet) to line it with an anti-projectile defense system? Or de we need to just erase the violent and gruesome parts of the Koran and wipe out the adrenaline charged, overly excitable types who take them literally? Either/Or? |
| Posted by: Chaitch Fliter3582 2006-07-16 11:12 |
| #9 yep R2D2 |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-07-16 10:57 |
| #8 How about the Phalanx CIWS (correct me on the name or acronym). Isn't it the rapid fire/fill-the-sky-with-lead-and-let-the-incoming-round-hit-it device? Is it a question of range - i.e. katyusha's trajectory crossing the border is out of range? Comments and answers appreciated. |
| Posted by: Chaitch Fliter3582 2006-07-16 10:28 |
| #7 Tactical high energy lasers have shot down rockets - including Katyushas, mortar rounds and artillery rounds in tests, but are not yet in production and deployment. This is a joint US-Israel program. Under development for nearly four years, the joint U.S.-Israeli Tactical High Energy Laser (THEL) destroyed an in-flight, short-range Katyusha rocket for the first time during a June 6 test. Although Lieutenant General John Costello, commanding general of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, hailed the test as turning "science fiction into reality," the laser must still undergo several more tests, including tests against multiple rockets, before being shipped to Israel later this year, as currently planned. Stemming from an April 1996 commitment from President Bill Clinton to then-Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres to help defend northern Israeli cities from terrorist attacks, THEL is a high-energy chemical laser designed to shoot down short-range rockets. In the June 6 test, THEL identified, tracked, and shot down the Katyusha rocket, which was traveling at about a speed of Mach 1, without any preprogrammed information on the rocket's trajectory or outside guidance. The effective range of the laser is classified, and its operational performance is susceptible to environmental factors, such as wind, rain, and fog. At present, Israel only intends to take delivery of the current THEL demonstrator, while the United States has no plans to acquire the system, which Pentagon officials say is not mobile enough for U.S. defense needs. However, a U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command spokesperson remarked that the "THEL success demonstrates that high-energy lasers do have the potential for meeting the Army's need" for defenses against rockets, mortars, and artillery. The current program is expected to total more than $250 million dollars, including an Israeli contribution of $67.5 million. That test was back in 2000. The US has significantly progressed in THELs on movable platforms but none are operationally deployed to my knowledge. |
| Posted by: lotp 2006-07-16 08:50 |
| #6 Even if possible it doesn't make sense to targe a Grad with a Patriot. It's an ugly thought, but it's just not cost effective. I doubt there are more than 100 Patriot rounds in the IDF inventory. |
| Posted by: 6 2006-07-16 06:27 |
| #5 The way the Katyushas are raining down on Israel, they'd exhaust their Patriots in short order. Even if the Patriot could take out Katyushas with 100% success, they would still want to save them for bigger threats. |
| Posted by: gorb 2006-07-16 03:55 |
| #4 Arrow is not fully operational, nor is the laser anti-katusha system. Only Patriots and Standard 3s are fully operational, and both are anti-ballistic missile systems. Katushas and mortars are too short-ranged and too low altitude for the ABM systems. SCUDs and FROGs have an high enough arc to be intercepted. |
| Posted by: Shieldwolf 2006-07-16 02:34 |
| #3 Surely, Patriot isn't the only missle defense system available to Israel. |
| Posted by: Captain America 2006-07-16 00:34 |
| #2 The missile that hit the gunboat was a Silkworm variant, from what I've read. That element of surprise thing has to be pretty delicately calibrated. The IDF is warned now. |
| Posted by: Fred 2006-07-16 00:28 |
| #1 Hi Fred! I heard patriot can't bring down katyushas but CAN bring down the more sophisticated, longer-range Iranian missiles such as the one that blew up the Israeli warship. The warship could have been protected by a missile warning system but it was switched off as the Israelis didn't realise Hizballah had the missile capability to strike at that range |
| Posted by: Anon1 2006-07-16 00:11 |