TEL AVIVÑ Israel has tested its new urban warfare doctrine in a
military offensive against Palestinian insurgency strongholds in West Bank
cities.
The Israel Defense Forces employed an array of unmanned air vehicles (UAVs),
armored systems and helicopters in the military's urban warfare doctrine.
Senior officers said the plan is meant to capture Palestinian
cities while minimizing civilian casualties.
"We are not using jets, cannons or artillery," Maj. Gen Dan Harel, head
of the IDF Operations Directorate, said. "What we do is move very
slowly with most of the fighting done by infantry while UAVs and ground
posts provide intelligence to guide our forces."
On Thursday, Israeli military sources reported that the military
withdrew from 24 villages in the West Bank. Israeli forces are said to be
continuing operations in such cities as Bethlehem, Jenin, Nablus and
Ramallah.
Military officer said the restrained use of combat jets marks a
departure from earlier this year when Israeli F-16 multi-role jets
bombed Palestinian targets. They said the use of jets does not help
in the house-to-house fighting required to capture urban areas.
Attack helicopters such as the AH-64A Apache direct anti-tank fire
toward specific targets, the officers said. Tanks are used to enter the area
but do not fire shells.
"We are using tanks on the flanks," Harel said. "We don't use heavy
weapons, but use machine guns because the tank sights ensure precision
fire."
The Israeli campaign in such cities as Jenin, Nablus and Ramallah
focuses on elite units capturing posts and then moving from house-to-house
in a search for insurgents. They said UAVs provide real-time data and video
to ground forces commanders, bolstered by ground observation posts.
Military sources said Israeli forces are being aided by a range of UAVs,
including the Hermes 450. The sources said the UAVs have performed well but
do not approach the capabilities required of a tactical UAV.
"What we're using now are big, but they do the job," Harel said. "What
we need, are tactical UAVs. It's a matter of funding."
