Hamas drone engineer assassinated in Tunisia was working on undersea drone to attack Israeli gas platforms
Ten days ago, a drone engineer who worked for both Hamas and Hezbullah was assassinated in Tunisia. The Tunisian government accused 'foreign entities' of being involved in the assassination, and both Hamas and Hezbullah pointed a finger at Israel.
It now turns out that the engineer, Mohammed al-Zawahri, was developing an undersea drone that could be used to attack Israeli natural gas platforms in the Mediterranean. From Professor Jacobson.
Chief Hamas engineer Mohammad al-Zawahri, who was killed in Tunisia earlier this month, was reportedly working on drones and “remote-controlled submarines” for the Islamic terror group. A TV station in Tunisia recently aired footage allegedly presenting these projects.
Talk show Labes aired photos from al-Zawahri’s lab with host Rashed
al-Hiyari claiming one of them shows remote-controlled “submarines”
developed by the Tunisia engineer.
“Israel knew he was a real threat and that is why it assassinated
him,” al-Hiyari said of al-Zawahri. “There was a failed attempt to
assassinate him several months ago as well.”
Alzoari was an aeronautical engineer who specialized in
the manufacture of drones. For the last few years, he was employed by
Hamas and Hezbollah. According to sources in Tunis, he also designed an
unmanned naval vessel, apparently submersible and capable of attacking
targets at sea.
According to the Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronoth (the Hebrew language version of Ynet), al-Zawahari was involved specifically in targeting the natural gas platforms.
Images captured earlier this month from the Eros-B, a dual-use
imaging satellite owned and operated by ImageSat International, reveal
high operational tempo at Latakia International Airport, where Moscow
has based some 12 Su-25 fighters, a similar amount of Su-24 bombers, 16
Mi-35 attack helicopters and a small amount of Su-30 and Su-34 aircraft.
Outsized
Antonov 124 and Ilyushin Il-76 cargo aircraft are seen offloading
additional cargo, all of which is protected by at least one SAM-22
surface-to-air missile system.
In an image dated Oct. 10, support
vehicles and open cockpit canopies indicate high levels of alert while
another image taken on the same day shows a foursome of Su-30 attack
fighters in so-called fast launch positions at the end of the runway.
Such
imagery taken by the relatively low end of Israel’s satellite force
represents a mere snapshot of the Jewish state’s persistent ability to
monitor areas of interest throughout Syria and beyond.
With more
than a handful of satellites orbiting the Earth at 90-minute intervals,
Israel has multiple opportunities every day to revisit suspected sites.
...
IDF officers and their Russian counterparts plan to hold their second
round of so-called deconfliction talks in Moscow later next month, with
an eye toward establishing a mechanism to prevent unintended
consequences in the event that Russian and Israeli aircraft are flying
in the same airspace.
Barack Hussein Obama admitted on Thursday that contractor Warren Weinstein, an American Jew who was kidnapped because he was Jewish and was being held by al-Qaeda for ransom, was killed in a January by a US drone strike. Sadly, the US had no clue where Weinstein was. This is from the first link and was written by former Congressman Allen West (R-Fl).
As reported by USA Today,
“President Obama expressed “grief and condolences” Thursday for a
January drone strike against suspected terrorists in Pakistan that
accidentally killed two hostages, including an American aid worker.
Obama said he took full responsibility for the operation and apologized
to the families of the hostages. “I profoundly regret what happened,” he
said. The two Western hostages — one American, one Italian — were
killed during a drone strike that targeted members of al-Qaida, the
White House said. They were Warren Weinstein, 73, an aid worker from
Maryland who was a contractor for the U.S. Agency for International
Development, and Giovanni Lo Porto, 39, an Italian citizen working for a
German aid agency. Both were kidnapped by al-Qaida in Pakistan —
Weinstein in 2011 and Lo Porto in 2012. The White House said the
counterterrorism operation, and another this year in the same region,
also killed two other Americans believed to be working with al-Qaida. In
an extraordinary eight-minute statement to reporters, a solemn Obama
halted at points during his brief remarks, looking down at notes. “I
cannot begin to imagine the anguish that the Weinstein and Lo Porto
families are enduring today,” he said.”
The first issue has to be, why is the family just now finding
out about this fratricide by drone strike, which occurred in January? I thought this was supposed to be the most transparent administration in American history.
...
I understand Clausewitz’s “Fog of War” but I also realize
that something went terribly wrong in the decision-making authorizing
this strike.
“The site of the attack had been under surveillance for hundreds of
hours, and that surveillance was “near-continuous” in the days just
before the attack, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said. The
spying used a variety of methods, including drone imagery, and
discovered a known al-Qaida operative driving into the compound, said
U.S. officials speaking on condition of anonymity. Based on that
intelligence, Earnest said, intelligence analysts concluded with “near
certainty” that al-Qaida leaders were present and that civilians were
not.”
What is apparent is that HUMINT intelligence assets were not used to
validate imagery. Then again, why would anyone want to support U.S.
intelligence gathering in Pakistan after how this administration has
treated Dr. Shakil Afridi who assisted in the identification of Osama
bin Laden’s hideout?
The preeminent question must be, who granted approval? If we
are restricting drone usage to the U.S. military, it is fairly easy to
ascertain the chain of command in the decision-making for this
engagement. But, if this was not within the military operational command
chain emanating out of Afghanistan — then we have a bureaucratic,
administration issue.
And based on the lack of transparency and length of
time before this was revealed, — it leads me to believe this decision
came from the latter, not the former. And that ladies and gents, is the
reason why the president of the United States took the podium.
Josh Rogin reports that the US had no clue Weinstein was there. That's because - as West noted as well - the US has no intelligence assets on the ground in the area.
One of the biggest questions following President Barack Obama’s
startling revelation Thursday that a U.S. drone strike had
killed Weinstein (and Italian hostage Giovanni Lo Porto) is how the
intelligence community could have been unaware that he was at the
al-Qaeda site where he became collateral damage in the effort to fight
terrorism. A lack of human resources on the ground and a total lack of
intelligence on Weinstein’s location contributed to the accident that
now has the administration and Congress rethinking how the
U.S. will conduct its secret war.
“We put a high priority in tracking and finding him and seeing what
we could do to rescue him,” Dan Benjamin, the State Department’s
ambassador for counterterrorism from 2009 to 2012, told me Thursday.
“The trail went cold quickly and we didn’t know where he was.”
...
Several officials told me that Weinstein, who worked as a business
development contractor for United States Agency for International
Development in Lahore, was nervous about his security just before his
capture. He had built a safe room in his house and told friends he was
hoping to leave Pakistan soon.
In 2012 and 2013, al-Qaeda release several hostage videos
of Weinstein begging the Obama administration to do more to retrieve
him. Several officials told me that although U.S. authorities
repeatedly raised his case with their Pakistani counterparts, there was
no direct interaction with al-Qaeda about any ransom or trade and no
real information on where the terrorist group was holding him for the
three years he was in captivity.
“I don’t think there was any attempt to rescue him because I don’t
think we had the slightest idea where he was,” said Rand Corporation’s
James Dobbins, who was the State Department’s special representative for
Afghanistan and Pakistan from 2013 to 2014. “I don’t believe there were
any real leads.”
Republican Congressman Duncan Hunter said Thursday
that Weinstein’s death was the result of a broken interagency process
in which a Pentagon official, Jason Amerine, developed a plan for a
trade that would have included the return of Weinstein along with Army
Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl. Bergdahl was released by the Taliban in 2014 in
exchange for five Taliban commanders being held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
“Warren Weinstein did not have to die," Hunter said in a statement.
"His death is further evidence of the failures in communication and
coordination between government agencies tasked with recovering
Americans in captivity — and the fact that he’s dead, as a result, is
absolutely tragic.”
But several officials told me today that a trade that included
Weinstein was never seriously entertained by the interagency team tasked
with retrieving him, which was led by the FBI and included the CIA,
State Department and Pentagon.
“It never struck us as a plausible option,” Dobbins said, noting that
Bergdahl was being held by the Taliban while Weinstein was being held
by al-Qaeda. The U.S. had extensive negotiations with the Taliban over
the years, but not with al-Qaeda, he pointed out.
This is why you can't lead from behind, and you can't pretend you're not fighting a war when your options are fight or surrender.
The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force in the Golan Heights says that Israel carried out Sunday's strike with drones (not helicopters as previously reported) and says that the strike violated the disengagement agreement.
The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force in the Golan Heights
released an official statement on Monday describing its troops' witness
accounts of the incident. According to the statement, the observers saw
two unmanned aircraft coming in from the Israeli side of the border and
crossing the demilitarized zone at UN position number 30 near the
village Masada in the northern Golan Heights.
The peacekeepers "observed two unmanned aerial
vehicles (UAVs) flying from the Alpha side and crossing the ceasefire
line," UNDOF said in its statement, referring to the Israeli side of the
border.
The UN observers lost sight of the aircraft as
their approached the UN position, the statement said, and an hour later
saw smoke arising from the general direction of the position. The origin
of the smoke could not be identified, the statement added.
Soon after the observers saw the UAVs flying in
from the area of Position 30 and over the Jabbata crossing of the
cease-fire line.
"This incident is a violation of the 1974 Agreement
on Disengagement between Israeli and Syrian forces," the UN said in its
statement.
Before the UN criticizes Israel, it needs to ask itself what Iranian and Hezbullah forces are doing in the Golan. The only Syrian forces in the area - the rebels - are apparently AOK with what happened.
U.S.-led air strikes hit grain silos and other targets in Islamic State-controlled territory in northern and eastern Syria overnight, killing civilians and wounding militants, a group monitoring the war said on Monday.
The
aircraft may have mistaken the mills and grain storage areas in the
northern Syrian town of Manbij for an Islamic State base, said the
Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. There was no
immediate comment from Washington.
...
The strikes in Manbij appeared to have killed only civilians, not
fighters, said Rami Abdulrahman, who runs the Observatory which gathers
information from sources in Syria.
"These
were the workers at the silos. They provide food for the people," he
said. He could not give a number of casualties and it was not
immediately possible to verify the information.
...
In eastern Syria, U.S.-led forces bombed a gas plant controlled by
the Islamic State outside Deir al-Zor city, wounding several of the
militant group's fighters, the Observatory said.
The
United States has said it wants strikes to target oil facilities held
by Islamic State to try to stem a source of revenues for the group.
The
raid hit Kuniko gas plant, which feeds a power station in Homs that
provides several provinces with electricity and powers oil fields
generators, the Observatory said.
I want to make it clear that I have no problem with classifying grain silos or gas plants as military targets. Depending on how they're being used, that classification could well be accurate. In fact, there's something to be said for targeting an opposing army's sources of fuel and food.
But it's hypocritical for Obama to condemn Israel for doing the exact same thing in Gaza. And it's not the first time Obama has done it.
Let's go to the videotape. Make sure to check out Scott Shane around the five-minute mark. Obama was very unhappy when Israel claimed that all of the male casualties between the ages of 18 and 40 in Gaza were probably terrorists.
The IDF used a Patriot missile to shoot down a Syrian drone over the Golan Heights on Sunday. The drone belonged to the Assad regime and the IDF believes that it's entry into Israel was accidental.
Forces fired a surface-to-air Patriot missile at the drone, which
came from the area of Quneitra - which has seen fierce clashes between
Syrian rebels and regime forces.
The Israel Defense Forces told the Associated Press that the drone appeared to have belonged to the Syrian military and had flown accidentally into Israeli airspace.
The IDF said that the drone was identified in Israel's air space and
shot down by a ground-to-air Patriot missile. The IDF "will respond to
any breach of Israel's sovereignty," Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said.
It is not clear whether the drone was carrying explosives or was sent
to photograph aerial images. It is also not clear whether the aircraft
was intentionally launched at Israel, or if it was sent in Israel's
direction by mistake.
Report: Israeli-made Hermes drone shot down over Baghdad
For the third time in a week, there is a report that an Israeli-made drone has been shot down. This time, the report comes out of Lebanon, the drone is a Hermes and the claim is that it was shot down over Baghdad.
According to a report on the Lebanese Al Mayadeen TV channel, considered a mouthpiece for the Hezbollah terror group, an Israeli drone exploded in mid-air
over Baghdad. The report claims that the drone was another Hermes-class
craft, the same type of drone that Iran claims fell over its airspace
earlier this week.
The report said that Iraqi army officials had gathered up what was
left of the drone, but were not commenting on the incident at this time.
A reporter on the ground in Baghdad said that staff from the US Embassy in Baghdad rushed to the scene of the crash in order to assess the situation.
On Monday, Iran claimed to have downed an Israeli drone as well. “A
spy drone of the Zionist regime (Israel) was brought down by a
missile... This stealth drone was trying to approach the Natanz nuclear
zone," the corps said in a statement on its official website
sepahnews.com. “This act demonstrates a new adventurism by
the Zionist regime... The Revolutionary Guard and the other armed forces
reserve the right to respond to this act," the statement added.
Iranian officials said that the drone was an Israeli-made "Hermes"
drone with a maximum flight range of 1,600 km (994 miles) and a 800-km
(500 mile) combat radius. The UAV's wings have a 5.5 meter (about 18
feet) wingspan, he added, and two high-quality cameras were mounted on
each end to capture precise images. The Al Mayadeen report said that the drone that fell over Baghdad was of the same type.
The drone that was shot down over Natanz is widely believed to belong to Azerbaijan. Hamas also claimed to have shot down an Israeli drone last week, but has yet to provide any evidence. The government and the IDF have had no comment about any of the drones supposedly shot down.
Announced the Brigades of the Martyr Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic resistance movement Hamas, they seized the aircraft reconnaissance drone, belonging to the Israeli army.
The brigades said in a statement via its social networking "Twitter" it captured the plane in the neighborhood of Oz, adding that it will be published in the coming hours video photographer for the event.
What if the drone Iran shot down over Natanz wasn't Israeli?
Azeri drone in Armenian military parade.
It looks exactly like the alleged "Israeli" drone "downed" in Iran. pic.twitter.com/urpTBssWw5
— Nehemia Gershuni (@Nehemia_G) August 25, 2014
Iranian television shows video of alleged Israeli spy drone
You will recall that on Sunday, Iran claimed to have downed an Israeli spy drone - apparently a Hermes - near its Natanz nuclear facility. Israel has declined to comment on the story.
But Iran put the alleged drone on television on Monday morning.
Let's go to the videotape.
Notice - no markings. Nothing that might identify it as an Israeli drone. Let's just say I doubt this story.
And even if they did down it, so what? Does anyone doubt that Israel is spying on Iran?
I cannot vouch for the authenticity, but this (Arabic) Facebook page is showing a video that it claims is the drone from Gaza arriving over Ashdod earlier this morning.
Let's go to the videotape.
I wonder why they did this. They couldn't find a suicide bomber?
An enemy Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), apparently laden with
explosives, was shot down by the IDF near the port city of Ashdod Monday
morning.
The interception caused a strong explosion to rock Ashdod and the air raid sirens went off, at around 6:30 a.m..
The Navy is reportedly looking for remains of the UAV.
The IDF Spokesman said that the UAV was shot down by a Patriot missile and that it fell in an open space along the Ashdod beach.
Mordechai Weisman, a resident of the Beit Shemesh area, told Arutz Sheva that the
downing of the UAV "was accompanied by a very loud and long jet-like
rumbling sound" that could be heard dozens of kilometers away.
“I just saw and heard massive column of smoke rising from Tel Aviv / coastal area,” he told Arutz Sheva's Tamar
Yonah. “It sounded as loud as a large jet engine even from here near
Beit Shemesh. Like nothing we've seen before. Looking at the photo, I
would say it is coming from the Ashdod area. And just for the record, it
was really scary watching and listening to that. The image does not at
all do it justice...”
The only thing that Hamas wants to do more than have Israel kill 'Palestinian' civilians is to kill Jews. It's time to destroy Hamas.
Report: IDF shoots down Gaza drone over Ashdod - UPDATED
I don't have any details of this report yet other than the 7:33 am news item here. Haaretz also tweeted it, and retweeted someone else who reported it just before them.
Apparently, however, Hamas tried sending a drone over Ashdod and the IDF shot it down. I also saw that the 'Code Red' rocket alarm was employed to get people off the streets while the drone was being shot down.
UPDATE 7:46 AM
Here's some more detail. Avital Leibovich is a former IDF spokeswoman.
#BREAKING : #Hamas tries to send an armed drone to target populated neighborhood in Ashdod. The drone was intercepted. #IsraelUnderFire
— Avital Leibovich (@AvitalLeibovich) July 14, 2014
UPDATE 7:49 AM
The drone was destroyed by a Patriot missile (translation of the Hebrew tweet below).
הותר לפרסום סוללת פטריוט השמידה מזלט שיצא מעזה
— tal lev-ram (@tallevram) July 14, 2014
Video: IDF kills four Hamas terrorists trying to infiltrate by sea
The IDF eliminated four terrorists attempting to infiltrate into Israel to carry out a mass terror attack on the beach near the IDF's Zikim base on Tuesday.
Let's go to the videotape.
And you were wondering why we need drones in Gaza....
What Hamas wants: Would you believe a 'cease fire'?
A Hamas spokesman actually asked for a 'cease fire' this evening according to a report on Israel Radio. But the request came with five conditions that Israel is very unlikely to fulfill:
1. Stop 'persecuting' Hamas in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and Gaza.
2. Reinstate the 'understandings' from Operation Pillar of Defens.
3. Stop flying over Gaza, including with drones (you've got to be kidding).
4. Release all the re-arrested terrorists from the terrorists for Gilad trade (fat chance).
5. Stop interfering with Hamas' unity agreements with Fatah.
More great news: Iran claims to have combat drone that can reach Israel, Europe
Iran claimed on Monday to have developed a drone called the Fotros, with a range of 2,000 kilometers, which is enough to reach the entire Middle East and a large chunk of Europe (the map above shows a 1,900 kilometer range from Iran). The drone is claimed to be capable of staying aloft for up to 30 hours, and is capable of carrying air-to-surface rockets.
“This drone is able to carry out reconnaissance missions and carry
air-to-surface rockets for combat operations,” the official IRNA news
agency quoted Dehghan as saying.
Dehghan said scientists at
Iranian Aircraft Manufacturing Industries, affiliated to Iran’s Defense
Ministry, have designed and developed the drone. He said the country has
achieved self-sufficiency in building drones, but didn’t elaborate.
Iran
has pursued a military self-sufficiency program since 1980s, and
frequently announces technological breakthroughs including the building
of jet fighters, tanks, missile, submarines, torpedoes and drones. Most
cannot be independently confirmed.
He said the new drone is a key
strategic addition to Iran’s military capabilities, and was developed
despite tough sanctions against Iran over its suspect nuclear program.
I'm so glad that none of the P 5+1 countries are in range. That way, this drone won't get in the way of there being a deal to relax sanctions on Iran. Besides, the sanctions didn't interfere with the drone's development anyway....
Terrorists fired a rocket at Eilat shortly before 1 a.m. on Tuesday
morning, triggering an air raid siren and activating the Iron Dome
anti-rocket battery, which is stationed at the Red Sea city.
The Iron Dome system intercepted at least one rocket, according to initial IDF assessments.
It is unknown at this stage whether additional rockets fell in open areas outside of the city.
Residents reported hearing the siren and a number of blasts.
I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com
