M113
US Refutes Israeli Claims of Lebanese APC Transfers to Hezbollah
The US government is refuting Israeli assessments that US-supplied troop carriers to Lebanon have made their way to Hezbollah forces operating in Syria on behalf of the Bashar Assad regime. The State Department and the Pentagon insist that Hezbollah-flagged vehicles in question – photographed last month in the Syrian city of Qusayr – did not […]
Israel Builds First Prototype of Future Fighting Vehicle
Israel’s Tank Production Authority is producing its first prototype of Eitan, an eight-wheel-drive armored fighting vehicle designed to weigh nearly half as much as the new Namer heavy carriers. The locally developed Eitan — Hebrew for steadfast — will be deployed alongside new Namers and will replace old M113s that still support the bulk of Israeli infantry. Sources […]
The Islamic State’s Best Weapon Was Born in the USA
When the United States gave more than 3,000 armored Humvees to Iraqi security forces over the past 12 years, U.S. officials could not have imagined that the humble utility vehicles would become a decisive weapon in the hands of Washington’s enemies from the Islamic State. But that is exactly what has happened. Humvees were some […]
IDF Steps Up Production of Next Gen Troop Carriers
The IDF is stepping up construction of state-of-the-art armored personnel carriers in order to better protect its troops, following lessons learned during the summer’s conflict in the Gaza Strip, Channel 2 reported Monday night. The military is allocating funds for the construction of a large number of ‘Namer’ (leopard) APCs, introduced in 2008, which sport the durable chassis […]
IDF Wants More Namer APCs and Trophy Protection Systems
Senior army officials hope that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will acquire better-protected armoured vehicles and more active protection systems (APS) such as Rafael’s Trophy. Their comments came after seven members of the elite Golani Brigade were killed by an rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) attack on their M113 armoured personnel carrier (APC) during Operation ‘Protective Edge’ […]
Budget Constraints Mean IDF Using Vulnerable APCs
An anti-tank missile hit an outdated APC early this week, killing seven soldiers. Only this morning did the IDF spokesman release for publication the names of the six Golani Brigade soldiers killed early Sunday morning when an APC (armored personnel carrier) was hit in the Saijiya battle. Particulars of the seventh soldier killed in the […]
Soldiers Killed in Gaza Were Deployed in 50-Year-Old APC
The armored personnel carrier in which seven Golani Brigade soldiers were killed when it was attacked early Sunday morning in the Gaza Strip is the oldest model still in use by the Israel Defense Forces. The American M113 APC was manufactured in the 1960s, and senior IDF officers were critical of the decision to send […]
Arms Sale Debate Erupts as Fallujah Falls
Weapon sales to Iraq have become entangled in sharply escalated political debate after al-Qaida affiliated forces regained partial control of the cities of Fallujah and Ramadi. Aides to Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., criticized the Obama administration last week, saying it had failed to engage Congress constructively on policy decisions, delaying […]