The outpost, developed by the state-owned Rafael Advanced Defense
Systems, was designed to contain a video camera that could see up to one
kilometer within the Gaza Strip. The camera has been linked to a command and
control
system that alerts human operators to an approaching infiltrator, Middle East Newsline reported.
The alert enables the operator in a rear command facility to track the
infiltrator and decide whether to fire. The camera would point the machine
gun in the direction of the infiltrator and fire on the push of a button by
the operator.
The army has also launched initial deployment of an unmanned ground
vehicle that would patrol the Gaza border. The UGV, termed Guardium, could
also be equipped with a machine gun fired by a human operator in a
rear C2 center.
Officials said the new unmanned post would be operated by the military's
Southern Command. In the first stage, intelligence officers have been
trained to use the C2 network to detect and track infiltrators. In the
second, stage, the operators would be taught to fire the machine guns by
remote control.
The first unmanned outpost has been erected along the border of the
northern Gaza Strip. Officials said several more facilities would be
established in 2008 as part of a pilot project.
"The system is not supposed to replace soldiers on the ground, and it
won't replace the need to attack terrorists when necessary," an officer
said.
