Special to WorldTribune.com

TEL AVIV — Israel has decided to deploy the Air Force to defend its
new natural gas fields.

Officials said the Israel Air Force was assigned to launch patrols
around gas fields in the eastern Mediterranean Sea near Lebanon. They said
the Air Force has deployed unmanned aerial vehicles to help protect the fields from
attacks by Hizbullah and other Iranian proxies.

“Terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Hizbullah have become the de facto rulers,” Israel Navy intelligence commander Rear Adm. Yaron Levy said. “They are sponsored by countries with significant military capabilities.”

Officials cited threats by Hizbullah to attack the Israeli gas fields,
which have been claimed by Lebanon. They said Hizbullah possesses both missiles and speedboats that could reach the gas facilities.

Israel has overseen the development of two major gas fields, Leviathan and Tamar, with a combined size of 500 kilometers. The two fields were believed to have combined reserves of up to 25 trillion cubic feet of gas.

The Navy intends to use UAVs to maintain a 24-hour-a-day watch over the
gas fields, located about 80 kilometers from northern Israel. The Air
Force’s largest platform was the Heron UAV, developed by Israel Aerospace
Industries and with an endurance of nearly 50 hours.

  Heron UAV, Hizbullah speedboats, Israel Air Force, Israel to use drones to guard gas fields from Hizbullah, Leviathan and Tamar, Mediterranean Sea gas fields, Rear Adm. Yaron Levy