Use of Unmanned Vehicles in Shooting of Nuclear Scientist
Diverse Unmanned Drones, Pickup Trucks, Remote-Controlled Boats...Power Supply Comparable to US
The Heron, an unmanned drone by Israeli defense contractor IAI[Image source: Israeli IAI official website]
[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-woo] As Iranian authorities have pointed to Israel as the mastermind behind the assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist, interest in Israel's unmanned weapons has increased. Israel is known to possess various unmanned weapons, including unmanned drones, unmanned pickup trucks, remotely controlled boats, and attack vehicles.
According to the British Daily Mail, on the 30th of last month (local time), Iranian authorities identified Israeli unmanned weapons as the main culprit behind the assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, the scientist who led Iran's nuclear development program, who was killed in a terrorist attack on the 27th. Iranian authorities are believed to consider an Israeli unmanned armed pickup truck as responsible, and this weapon has reportedly been deployed in actual operations in Israel since 2015. Israel had publicly revealed a Ford F-350 vehicle equipped with remote control sensors and cameras for border patrol purposes. Initially unarmed, it was later equipped with a remotely controlled machine gun starting the following year.
Israel's unmanned vehicles were developed for surveillance, patrol, search, and detection and detonation of improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Deployed in actual operations since 2010, these vehicles are equipped not only with ground radar to support explosive detection but also with equipment that jams radio signals triggering IED explosions. They are also armed with a remotely controlled 7.62mm machine gun operated from a control room.
Additionally, the Israeli military has deployed a small drone since 2008 that can be carried in a backpack and launched by hand when needed. This drone is used not only by the Israeli military but also by special forces in France, Australia, the Netherlands, and Canada. Due to its small size, instead of carrying weapons, it is equipped with standard and infrared cameras that provide much clearer views of enemy situations and especially provide target acquisition data necessary for airstrikes.
There are also unmanned weapons developed as reconnaissance drones but later equipped with missiles as their missions expanded. Israel's 'Hermes 450' missile drone can carry two Israeli-made Rafael or American Hellfire missiles and has a dedicated battalion in the Israeli Air Force operating it. This fully automated drone can fly autonomously until landing.
Some speculate that this drone may have been involved in the drone attack and explosion incident last month targeting a general of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps in the Al-Qaim area near the Syrian border.
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