Israel Matzav

Oh joy! Hamas has acquired 'advanced' anti-tank missiles

World Tribune is reporting that Hamas has acquired 'advanced' anti-tank missiles during mid-2009. The missiles were smuggled in from Egypt through the tunnels (Hat Tip: Free Republic). The report is based on 'Israeli military sources.'

Israeli military sources said the intelligence community has tracked the arrival of advanced Russian-origin anti-tank missiles in the Gaza Strip. The sources said the ATGMs reached the Gaza Strip through Egypt in mid-2009.

"These are missiles with a significantly longer range than Hamas has deployed until now," the source said.

The sources said the ATGMs have a range of at least three kilometers. They identified some of the weapons as the AT-3 Sagger, a wire-guided missile with a range of three kilometers and long used by the Iranian-sponsored Hizbullah in Lebanon.

The Israel Army has been placed on alert for Hamas anti-tank attacks along the Gaza border. The sources said the army has briefed Israeli communities along the Gaza border on how to respond to Hamas attacks.

Israel's Channel 2 television has reported that Israelis who live along the border have been ordered to leave their homes. The television did not say whether the evacuation, linked to Hamas's new ATGMs, would be permanent.

In the picture, the (black) missile is mounted on a Polish infantry fighting vehicle.

The anti-tank missiles used by Hamas in Operation Cast Lead had a range of 800 meters.

I have not seen confirmation of the evacuation on other Israeli web sites. But if this is true, it's obviously not good news. The Saggers caused significant casualties during the Second Lebanon War. They were one of the weapons that Yasser Arafat attempted to have smuggled into Gaza on the Karine A weapons ship.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:28 PM