High-tech warheads turn silent Israeli bombs into precision weapons

Israeli air strike in the northern Gaza Strip Photo: ARIS MESSINIS/AFP

The United States is helping Israel convert bombs into precision weapons. to limit heavy civilian casualties during the military campaign in the Gaza Strip.

High-tech $320 million (£252 million) Spice (smart, high-precision, cost-effective) kits that enable unguided silent bombs to hit their targets with a much higher degree of accuracy are sent to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

Although the IDF insists on avoiding collateral damage where possible, Israel has been heavily criticized for the high civilian death toll in the Gaza Strip. .

Bombs equipped with targeting kits use a scene matching algorithm to hit targets that match a preloaded image.

It can adjust its trajectory if it veers off course and can operate in fog or darkness. It is not affected by GPS jamming equipment, which can neutralize other guided weapons.

A CNN analysis in December found that nearly half of the air-to-ground munitions dropped by Israel on Gaza were unguided bombs, which pose a greater risk to civilians.

Danger to Israeli pilots

The US believes the kits will also reduce the danger to Israeli pilots, who have been forced to fly low over their targets to gain better aim.

The kit, which includes a new nose cone and wing fins, can fire a 1,000-pound bomb out to 75 miles or a 2,000-pound bomb out to 37 miles. They can also be used to destroy slow-moving vehicles.

Rafael, the Israeli company with a US subsidiary that makes the kits, is transferring the equipment to its Israeli company, according to the Wall Street Journal. parent company for use by the Israel Defense Forces.

The Israeli conflict in the Gaza Strip, a densely populated area of ​​about two million Palestinians, has taken a heavy toll on civilians over months of fighting.

Lloyd Austin, the US defense secretary, said more than 25,000 civilians had been killed in the strip Gaza Strip since October, and called on Israel to do more to protect innocent lives.

Fireball erupts from Hamas — occupied Jala Tower in Gaza City Photo: MAHMUD HAMS/AFP

There are fears that a humanitarian crisis could arise if the IDF launches an offensive on Rafah, a city in southern Gaza. Its population has swelled to about one million with Palestinians fleeing the conflict, but Israel believes it is Hamas's last stronghold.

Raphael claims the weapon can hit targets with «minimal collateral damage.» However, experts believe the size of the bombs dropped on the Gaza Strip means further civilian casualties are inevitable.

Senior defense researcher J.D. Williams told the newspaper: “Every time you conduct military operations in a densely populated urban area,

Shaan Sheikh, a military analyst, said: “Regardless of the instructions, if you drop a 2,000-pound bomb in an area filled with civilians, in an area filled with critical infrastructure, you blow up about 10 football fields.

“You'll have fragments and just pieces of debris extending out hundreds, if not a thousand feet.”