Since the start of the operation in Gaza, the IDF’s innovative robotic system has become a central weapon: advanced APCs are being sent to blow up booby-trapped buildings, neutralize explosives, and prepare the ground for the entry of ground forces�saving soldiers� lives and providing a glimpse of the battlefield of the future.
Dubbed on Gazan social media as �suicide APCs,� these machines have attracted widespread attention from residents who film and track their movements�a phenomenon reported by Army Radio on Sunday morning.
The program began with unmanned engineering “Panda” bulldozers but was later shifted to repurposed, older U.S.-made “Zelda” armored personnel carriers, which the IDF has in ample supply in storage. The IDF’s ground technology unit then created a launcher device that enables an APC to transport explosives to a target, withdraw, and detonate the charge remotely.
In recent days the system has been used dozens of times on a daily basis, demolishing hundreds of buildings across the Gaza Strip. The IDF says that the system has neutralized thousands of explosive devices and spared many soldiers� lives.
�This system has become one of the most dramatic combat tools in Gaza,� a senior officer said.
The IDF is also testing additional versions: robotic APCs to carry supplies to frontline units and armed versions equipped with machine-gun systems capable of detecting and engaging terrorists.
�Imagine what 100 robotic APCs could do�entering terrain ahead of troops to clear the way. This is the battlefield of the future, and we will be the first in the world to do it,� the officer added.
(YWN Israel Desk�Jerusalem)
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until hamas ym�sh starts sending children to play near them. and posting the resulting videos online. as hezbollah ym�sh did, with unexploded bombs, during the second lebanon war.