Drones, Missiles And Armored Vehicles: Israeli-made Weapon System Used By The Western Coalition To Fight The Taliban

JAKARTA - Along with the withdrawal of US-led Western coalition troops, Israeli-made weapons systems will no longer be used to fight the Taliban.

Never sending their troops directly to face the Taliban in Central Asia, many Western coalition countries have used Israeli weapons in their war against the Taliban for the past 20 years.

Citing The Jerusalem Post Tuesday, August 24, countries such as Britain, Germany, Canada, and Australia have been using Israeli-made weapons for years, according to several reports.

Many countries use remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) or drones to gather intelligence, and Israeli-made SPIKE missiles are used in combat.

Troops can also drive safely in high-intensity areas with the Israeli-made MRAP (Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected) light military tactical vehicle.

One of the main Israeli weapons systems used by foreign militaries in Afghanistan is drones. Foreign reports say Israel is considered a leading drone exporter and has sold the system to countries including Australia, Canada, and Germany, which send troops to Afghanistan.

The German Air Force began operating the Heron TP, manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), in Afghanistan in 2010. They were involved in thousands of missions, clocking thousands of flight hours.

The Heron TP is IAI's most advanced RPA with an endurance of 40 hours, a maximum takeoff weight of 11.685 pounds, and a payload of 2.204 pounds. They can be used for reconnaissance, combat, and support roles, and can carry air-to-ground missiles to destroy enemy targets.

German pilots were trained in Israel on how to operate the RPA and learned about its surveillance capabilities. Apart from Germany, the Canadian and Australian militaries also fly the Heron 1 RPA IAI in Afghanistan.

Equipped with satellite data links and electro-optical infrared sensors, the Heron 1 is not only capable of providing reconnaissance to ground troops in combat situations, assisting in convoys and patrols, profiling movement, and conducting long-range monitoring, but is also capable of tracking explosives from the air.

In addition to the Heron, Since 2005 the Australian Army in Afghanistan has also flown the Skylark 1 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) manufactured by Elbit Systems.

The Skylark, measuring seven and a half feet, is used by troops for tactical surveillance and close-range counter-terror missions. It can be launched by one or two soldiers, and operated on the roof of a building or behind an armored personnel carrier, providing live video to the operator once airborne.

With a range of 10-15 km, this mini-UAV features an extremely quiet electric motor and excellent observation capabilities that provide troops with intelligence beyond their line of sight, increasing their performance in a variety of mission scenarios. Australia also flies the Skylark during missions in Iraq.

In addition to the RPA, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems' Spike NLOS (Non-Line Of Sight) missiles are used by the UK and Canada in Afghanistan. The precision of the missiles proved useful in the battle against the Taliban. Although the UK tried to keep its use a secret, they publicly admitted to using the missile, known as the Exactor, in 2014.

Spike NLOS is capable of penetrating 39 inches of armor and can be operated in either direct attack or mid-way navigation based on target coordinates alone. This mode allows the defeat of long-range hidden targets with precise precision, damage assessment, and real-time intelligence gain.

This missile has a range of 25 km. and can be used with a number of warheads such as heat, fragmentation, PBF (penetration, explosion, and fragmentation), and PBF/F suitable for urban and high-intensity conflicts. The missile, which can be mounted on multiple platforms, gives the shooter the ability to strike targets at long ranges and gain real-time intelligence and damage assessment after the attack.

Now along with the withdrawal of Western coalition troops, the Taliban not only gained control of the region but also got the 'collapsed durian' of sophisticated weapons made by the United States from the hands of the Afghan army.

As previously reported, current intelligence assessments believe the Taliban are in control of more than 2.000 armored vehicles, including the US Humvee, and up to 40 aircraft potentially including the UH-60 Black Hawk, reconnaissance attack helicopter, and ScanEagle military drone.

"We have seen Taliban fighters armed with US-made weapons that they confiscated from Afghan forces. This poses a significant threat to the United States and our allies", Republican politician Michael McCaul, who sits on the US House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in an email. citing Reuters Thursday, August 19.