Translation of the article:
El Pais Newspaper:
Israeli 'drones' monitor the Syrian War
by David Alandete
Israel is silent in regards to the crisis in Syria, but in silence, Israel has become the most reliable provider of information to its allies in the West on Bashar al-Assad's regime. When the United Nations was looking for a reliable estimate of the chemical weapons stockpile of Damascus, for comparison with the amounts reported by the regime in the process of disarmament, they trusted the Israeli figures: 1,000 tons of poisonous substances scattered over more than fifty deposits. Israel has become a spectator in a constant state of alert , it avoids commenting on the conflict, but that controls what happens in Syria through a large network of aerial espionage founded on an impressive fleet of drones.
From Palmahim Air Base, south of Tel Aviv, the drones are controlled by the First Squadron of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in Israel. The most common model for observation work is the Heron. It is the eye of Israel in the region, and it never rests. There are secret reconnaissance missions permanently. The small unmanned aircraft can fly for more than 30 hours and, to avoid detection, at an altitude of 4500 meters . Usually an operator controls and a second operator screens some extremely clear images in which people and vehicles are distinguished .
" The army, the infantry and intelligence agencies are our customers and we offer visual intelligence. We are responsible for analyzing the images and operating the cameras and their responsibility is to offer the objectives," explains Gil more veteran in managing drones, who for security reasons asked to keep his last name secret. When asked about the exact number of control devices, he responds : "We have more than two, less than a hundred, and not enough".
On three occasions this year Israel has attacked in Syria. U.S. intelligence believes that the targets were missiles in transit from Iran to Lebanon's Hezbollah. This degree of surgical precision in the attacks obeys to the continued Israeli surveillance of what happens in Syria, and not only from its border. In recent months Jordan has allowed Israeli drones to form two routes that cross its airspace for espionage, according to Western military sources.
Israel is the world's leading power in drones. According to Frost & Sullivan, in the past eight years it exported 4,600 million dollars in remote aircrafts. The Israel Defense Forces only admit to the use of models such as the Heron, for espionage, although according to Western intelligence sources they also possess missile carrying devices.
In the past, observers in Gaza have accused Israel of attacking targets with missiles fired from drones, which the Israel Defense Forces neither confirms nor denies. It is believed that an attack from a drone killed last year Ahmed Jabari, Hamas military leader. In January the Council of United Nations Human Rights launched an investigation into the killing of civilians by the use of drones in Gaza and other conflict zones like Yemen.
According to Professor Amos Giora, a renowned expert on Israeli drones who teaches at the University of Utah, Israel has become a leader in these devices "due to a combination of the technological innovation spirit of the country and because of its geographical location, surrounded by enemy countries and multiple threats. It is the result of innovation and geopolitical reality . " To Giora drones " have the advantage of facilitating the identification of terrorists or enemy targets , minimizing the loss of innocent civilians."
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