TEL AVIV — The Israel Army has deployed llamas in the war
against Hizbullah in Lebanon.
Military sources said for the first time Israeli commando units have
used llamas to carry equipment through the rocky hills of southern Lebanon.
The sources said the llamas were supplied mostly to special operations
forces that roamed behind enemy lines during the first days of the war.
"The idea is that you can send a llama to carry much of the supplies
needed for one of more squadrons to operate for several days," a source
said. "Then, you don't need vehicles or helicopters to maintain supplies."
Israel has expanded its ground operations in southern Lebanon and moved
west to the Mediterranean coast in what could be the last day of the
military offensive, Middle East Newsline reporte. The military, acknowledging failure to achieve its goals
in the three-week-old war, has reported nearly 10,000 troops, including
reservists, in Lebanon.
The sources said llamas were used in exercises in 2005 to carry about
100 kilograms of supplies each. During the current war in Lebanon, the
Paratroop Brigade's reconnaissance unit was supplied with llamas.
The llamas required little food and water and were disciplined, the
sources said. They said the use of llamas would be expanded amid their
success in the war.
