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2006-07-14 Syria-Lebanon-Iran
IDF confirms warship hit by explosive-laden UAV
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Posted by Old Patriot 2006-07-14 17:34|| || Front Page|| [7 views since 2007-05-07]  Top

#1 I was just over at Daily Kos, lookin at those drooling mongoloids' posts, I don't they even know there is a war breaking out in the ME.
Posted by bigjim-ky 2006-07-14 17:40||   2006-07-14 17:40|| Front Page Top

#2 Okay then, 60+ years AFTER the West started using anti-ship missiles/drones, the Arabs catch on to the idea. Wonder if that UAV is the one South Africa under the ANC has been selling to Iran?
Posted by Shieldwolf 2006-07-14 17:53||   2006-07-14 17:53|| Front Page Top

#3 It’s real easy to strap some explosives on a UAV and ram it into a ship, but causing “severe” damage to ship with a UAV is a major step militarily. I wonder who gave it to them (eye cast toward Iran/Syria).
Posted by Cyber Sarge 2006-07-14 18:08||   2006-07-14 18:08|| Front Page Top

#4 I thought Exocets were made by France.
Posted by Nimble Spemble 2006-07-14 18:09||   2006-07-14 18:09|| Front Page Top

#5 I suspect that most of the speculation and theories I see posted about the net are wrong at worst and hopefully optimisitic best. This is gonna get out of hand.

But then wars always do.

Why is it that the freakin world just cannot seem to notice that if left alone and to their own devices the Israelies just want to have fun and leave everyone else alone? Heck, they'd probably even be happy to show the arabs how to do something else besides whine and end up being their best friends.

Are they really that sick? And by sick I mean in the worst sense of the mental term.

And that's not even counting the arabs.
Posted by kelly 2006-07-14 18:32||   2006-07-14 18:32|| Front Page Top

#6 The war just got bigger.
Posted by Secret Master 2006-07-14 18:46||   2006-07-14 18:46|| Front Page Top

#7 Sounds like the Izzie Navy airwatch wasn't paying attention. Hizb'allah had flown the Iranian “Mheger 4” ("Mirsad 1" Hizb name) UAV over Israel last year. The concern was that they could be loaded with explosives or CW and crash into packed crowds like a stadium.

"Mirsad 1" It likely has only a 10-15Kg payload which is enough to heavily damage a small Patrol Boat, but would only scratch a larger metal boat. Of course Hizb could have received even larger Iranian UAVs.
Posted by ed 2006-07-14 19:19||   2006-07-14 19:19|| Front Page Top

#8 "Are they really that sick?"

Yes. They are that sick.

Sick enough to buy the whiney-ass Arab bullshit that six million Jews (barely enough to populate the city and county of Philadelphia) occupying a nearly worthless chunk of real estate barely the size of New Jersey, are somehow magically causing ALL the problems of over a billion Muslims.

Fuck it. FRY 'EM UP. As far as I'm concerned, Israel is more than welcome to do whatever it wants to secure its safety. And I mean WHATEVER.

Posted by Dave D.">Dave D.  2006-07-14 19:41||   2006-07-14 19:41|| Front Page Top

#9 I agree with Dave. In the end someday the final acts will be mushrooms over Qom, Mecca, Mediana, Damascus etc. Cause, Effect and Sanity are missing in that sick culture.
Posted by 3dc 2006-07-14 20:10||   2006-07-14 20:10|| Front Page Top

#10 Sooner or later, probably sooner, we will be drawn into this thing. Probably to keep Iran at bay. Fine. Let's have it out and be done with it before the MMs get nukes.
Posted by Alaska Paul">Alaska Paul  2006-07-14 20:42||   2006-07-14 20:42|| Front Page Top

#11 My worst fear is that this whole damn thing fizzles out over the next few days, to yet another damned inconclusive conclusion, without the Iranians giving us the perfect excuse to go absolutely flat-out, totally bugshit MEDIEVAL on their skanky ho' asses.

Posted by Dave D.">Dave D.  2006-07-14 20:46||   2006-07-14 20:46|| Front Page Top

#12 LGF linking to reports the idiots hit an Egyptian ship with one of their toys.
Posted by Robert Crawford">Robert Crawford  2006-07-14 20:52|| http://www.kloognome.com/]">[http://www.kloognome.com/]  2006-07-14 20:52|| Front Page Top

#13 Dave nails it.
Posted by j. D. Lux 2006-07-14 20:52||   2006-07-14 20:52|| Front Page Top

#14 Fox says Hezbola hit a civilian boat. No other information at this time.
Posted by Deacon Blues">Deacon Blues  2006-07-14 20:59||   2006-07-14 20:59|| Front Page Top

#15 About an hour before Friday's raid, the five remaining Airbus jets belonging to the national carrier Middle East Airlines flew to Amman for safety reasons, officials said.

IDF left a runway long enuf? Weird. Buy Boeing.
Posted by 6 2006-07-14 21:06||   2006-07-14 21:06|| Front Page Top

#16 Deka says is was a Saar-5 corvette, hit in the helicopter pad and buring for hours with 4 missing crewmen. Sheesh.

Boys, you need to bounce the rubble all aross Hizbanistan.
Posted by Brett 2006-07-14 21:27||   2006-07-14 21:27|| Front Page Top

#17 Dave D.---You may not have to worry about things fizzling out after a few days. This just came up on Belmont Club :

Haaretz has details on the attack which damaged an Israeli naval vessel, by an UAV, in the dark and while operating 16 km from the Lebanese coast.

An explosives-laden drone, apparently launched by Hezbollah, hit an Israel Navy warship off the coast of Beirut, causing serious damage to its steering capability, Israel Defense Forces confirmed Friday night. The incident occurred at around 8:30 P.M., as the ship was some 16 kilometers from the Lebanese coast. The blast caused a fire close to the helicopter landing pad onboard. The ship's steering mechanism also sustained some damage. Several hours after the vessel was hit, an Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman said the damage was worse than originally thought. She added that the ship, still burning, was being towed back to Israel. There were some 80 people on board the ship when it was hit.

This is a major warship operating in line of sight, but beyond normal nighttime visual range. According to the Security Watchtower, the drone was probably a Mirsad-1.

A Hezbollah unmanned aerial drone crashed into an Israeli warship off the Mediterranean coast on Friday, damaging the steering of the vessel. Hezbollah leader Sheik Hassan Nasrallah claimed the ship had been sunk. The UAV was likely a Mirsad-1, built by the Iranian state owned Qods Aviation Industry. On previous occasions, Nasrallah has boasted that "you can load the Mirsad plane with a quantity of explosive ranging from 40 to 50 kilos and send it to its target."

In 2005, U.S. and Israeli intelligence noted that Iranian soldiers were stationed in southern Lebanon where they operated the Mirsad-1, eight of which are believed to have been given by Iran to Hezbollah. Reports indicate that an estimated 30 Hezbollah operatives have completed training in Isfahan, Iran. Asked about the threat of the UAV's, Joseph Cirincione, a weapons expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said "the danger is that Hezbollah will now have the capability to inflict greater damage on Israel by more precise targeting."

Commentary

An attack at this distance, by night on a warship indicates a very high level of targeting skill. A capability beyond Hezbollah's own limited resources. This suggests that Iranian technical assistance to its client has been extensive and thorough. In some ways, this incident is reminiscent of the use of Saggers and integrated air defense by the Egyptian Army during the Yom Kippur War. Iran had anticipated what Israel would do and prepared for it. It is now not out of the question that Hezbollah may have MANPADs or very long range, perhaps even guided rockets. With what warheads we can only guess, but chemical is not out of the question. The stricken Israeli warship is major combatant on the scale of navies in the area. Although not sunk, it has been mission killed. This is a spectacular naval victory for Hezbollah.

But it also brings Israel and Iran closer to direct combat. With proof that advanced weapons are now in the hands of Hezbollah, it becomes absolutely impossible for Israel to consider Hezbollah in isolation from its armorers. The diplomatic efforts to date are now imperiled by this grave development.
Posted by Alaska Paul">Alaska Paul  2006-07-14 21:59||   2006-07-14 21:59|| Front Page Top

#18 My prediction is that the U.S. Navy will expend 639 man-years explaining to congress critters and journalists how the US does things different.

From what I know so far, this is a major fuck up for the Israelies, even if the Iranians are helping.
Posted by Penguin 2006-07-14 23:07||   2006-07-14 23:07|| Front Page Top

#19 Article: This is a major warship operating in line of sight, but beyond normal nighttime visual range.

This is key. I don't think the battleship USS New Jersey operated within line of sight when it pounded Lebanon in the 1980's after the Marine barracks bombing. The Israelis obviously want to get as close as possible so they can use shells instead of more expensive missiles. I think they're done with using shells until they learn how to jam enemy UAV frequencies.
Posted by Zhang Fei 2006-07-14 23:09|| http://timurileng.blogspot.com]">[http://timurileng.blogspot.com]  2006-07-14 23:09|| Front Page Top

#20 Looks like Iran upgraded Hizb to the "Ababil" with 40Kg payload and 300Km/h cruise speed. With those specs, it could easily be used as a small TV guided antiship missile. It would play havoc with loaded tankers. I hope the US Navy is paying attention.
Posted by ed 2006-07-14 23:20||   2006-07-14 23:20|| Front Page Top

#21 The Hizo's hit another ship while targeting additional Israeli Navy vessels. The Hizo's does score another hit but...but...but, it ends being a civilian merchant ship that belongs to ""drum roll please"" Egypt. Muslim GPS needs some more fine tuning.
Posted by Angock Flavitch6234 2006-07-14 23:20||   2006-07-14 23:20|| Front Page Top

#22 The merchant ship hit was by a (un)lucky hit from a barrage of unguided Katushyas.
Posted by ed 2006-07-14 23:27||   2006-07-14 23:27|| Front Page Top

#23 I have no expertise regarding naval matters, but have read that helicopters have attacked targets in Beirut. I assume these were launched from naval vessels, hence the "line of sight" proximity of Israeli ships to the Lebanese coast.

Comments?
Posted by Kirk 2006-07-14 23:29||   2006-07-14 23:29|| Front Page Top

#24 ed,

barrage of unguided Katushyas

I know. "Muslim GPS" is just some Friday night humor on my part.
Posted by Angock Flavitch6234 2006-07-14 23:47||   2006-07-14 23:47|| Front Page Top

00:01 twobyfour
23:56 twobyfour
23:49 Captain America
23:47 Angock Flavitch6234
23:35 Hupinetle Sninetle9012
23:35 Frank G
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23:28 2Ducks
23:27 ed
23:26 Captain America
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23:20 Angock Flavitch6234
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23:18 Thromort Glomoger4987
23:13 Captain America
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23:09 Zhang Fei
23:07 Penguin
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22:56 Ebbinetle Uninemp2325
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