Israeli soldiers work on a tank at a beachhead near the Gaza border. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/AP
Terrible Israeli Merkava. The battle tanks will be a valuable target for Hamas as it advances through the streets of Gaza.
The terrorist group has already demonstrated its ability to counter the 70-ton vehicles, which experts consider some of the best fighting vehicles in Gaza. peace.
But Israeli commanders who will rely on tactics and technology to counter Hamas have drawn lessons from the war in Ukraine, which they hope will help save nearly 400 tanks from the same fate as thousands of Russian vehicles lost in battle.
Israeli tanks have long patrolled the area near the border with the Gaza Strip, often coming under attack from Hamas with grenades dropped from drones.
But when elements of the Islamist terrorist group crossed into Israel in October 7, they carried with them guides showing the weak points of Israeli equipment, such as the rear hatch and ammunition, the space between the turret and the hull, or the soft bottom of the tank.
To counter. The Merkava's advanced defensive systems used Iranian-made anti-tank weapons with special tandem warheads. Unverified footage released by Hamas shows at least two successful strikes on the latest version of the Mark IV tank.
The Hamas dossier notes that rocket-propelled grenades fired from a distance of less than 50 meters have the greatest chance. about defeating the complex Trophy active defense system, which uses radar and sensors in combination with rapid-fire projectiles to intercept incoming missiles.
Hamas's homemade tandem rockets, which use a first warhead to trigger the system and a second to deliver an incapacitating strike, could also play a role in defeating Israeli tanks. A propaganda film released by Hamas before the attack showed the weapons being produced in an underground facility.
Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a former British Army commander, said it was unlikely that Israeli tanks would be used in close combat, especially in densely populated urban areas of Gaza.
He said the Merkavas would be safer positioned in the rear and used for «long and accurate fire» at a distance of just over a mile.
This will also help tank operators stay clear. range of Hamas' more advanced anti-tank guided missiles.
Israel is expected to use tanks only in a close support role when its troops will enter the Gaza Strip. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/AP
Hamas has had clear success in destroying single tanks, including capturing an unattended combat vehicle parked at a military base, he added.
“It will be a completely different challenge when the tanks are protected by Israeli infantry,” Mr. n de Bretton-Gordon.
The Israelis are expected to use tanks only in a «close support» role, providing a «solid piece of metal» as infantry move through Gaza City.
But there are lessons to be learned from Russia's failed invasion of Ukraine, during which Moscow's tanks often operated independently without air or infantry support.
Brigade Hisham Ibrahim, commander of the Israel Defense Forces Armored Corps, told the Economist: “We saw how the Russians fought in Ukraine and the mistakes they made. They fought there alone, rather than using combined arms tactics.»
Mr. de Bretton-Gordon said Israeli tank commanders had already taken note of the use of «$500 drones and $500 grenades.» » is used to destroy vehicles worth several million dollars.
«We saw in Ukraine that very simple and original ideas for destroying tanks worked, we figured out how to avoid hand grenades,» he added.
Israeli tanks have already been seen with so-called «cages» protecting them from small bombs dropped from the air.
Metal cages resemble roof-mounted armor used by Russian and Ukrainian troops to prevent small bombs being dropped store-bought drones through open hatches or weak spots.
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