TEL AVIV — Hizbullah has captured an Israeli-origin advanced
anti-tank guided missile system.
Israel state-owned television said an unidentified army unit left the
launcher and missile in southern Lebanon, Middle East Newsline reported. The television said in a Nov. 3
report that Hizbullah found the Spike system and transferred it to Iran.
Israeli military sources said the Ground Forces Command has determined
that Hizbullah seized the Spike anti-tank guided missile system. The sources
said Hizbullah captured the Israeli system during the war in Lebanon in the
summer of 2006.
"We know that one Gil [Spike] system has gone missing in an area where
Hizbullah operated," a source said.
The Spike was developed and produced by the state-owned Rafael, Israel
Armament Development Authority. The system, sold to several countries, was
widely used against Hizbullah in the 34-day war in Lebanon, which ended on
Aug. 14.
"It obviously went to Iran," Yoav Limor, the television's military
commentator, said.
The television report said Israel's military has assessed that Iran
would seek to reverse-engineer the Spike ATGM, with a range of four
kilometers. Limor said this would allow Iran to develop counter-measures.
During the war, Hizbullah used Russian-origin anti-tank missiles
obtained from Syria. They included the AT-14 Kornet missile, with a range of
5.5 kilometers.
