IDF: Hizbullah tried to down planes
Senior officer says Lebanese terror group constantly attempting to improve anti-aircraft capabilities. On scale of 1-10, IDF's response to Hizbullah attack on Monday was 1, he says
“Hizbullah terrorists tried to hit IAF planes during the raids executed by the IDF following the failed kidnap attempt in the village of Rajar,” a senior IDF officer said.
Hours later the IAF bombed a number of Hizbullah posts and transportation infrastructure in south Lebanon.
The officer said that as Hizbullah terrorists withdrew from the Mount Dov area, the group tried to use various arms to down an IAF plane. “We are aware of the great risk involved in our over-flights and we are prepared,” he said.
“There is no doubt that for Hizbullah downing an Israeli plane will be a great success on every level and therefore we are being extremely vigilant,” the officer added.
It is no secret that Hizbullah is constantly trying to improve its antiaircraft firing capabilities, as hitting an IAF plane remains a top objective, the officer said.
Improved percision
The officer described the IDF raids in south Lebanon following the clashes as successful, relating their success to high-level coordination between the Northern Command and the Air Force whose planes can execute raids within minutes of calls from northern posts.
“We do not have the possibility to fight single terrorists hiding in homes. That’s the job of paratroops who know how to do a good job of this. Yet the mechanism that has been forged between the Northern Command and the Air Force allows us to hit a target house within minutes,” the officer said.
He noted that new technologies introduced by the Air Force over the last few years improved the level of precision with pilots being able to identify and hit targets in bad weather conditions.
The officer said the latest raids were meant to communicate a message to Hizbullah: “If we translate the intensity of our attacks to a scale of 1 to 10, I can tell you with certainty that what you saw this week was of intensity 1 in terms of scope and fire,” the officer said.
The army has information that Hizbullah terrorists were injured and buildings belonging to the group that were not hit in the past were destroyed in the raids.
