IDF army during operation ´Cast Lead´ in Gaza.Gaza Division holds contingency exercise ahead of possible offensive in Strip. Drill tests operational range of Engineering Corps' D9 bulldozers.
The IDF's Combat Engineering Corps held a drill testing its Caterpillar D9 bulldozers on Tuesday, indicating that while calm has been restored to Israel's southern communities, the army remains on alert.
"Terror groups' capabilities are greater than they were in the past, but we have learned our lesson and improved our capabilities as well," Captain Moshe Yakobovich, who commands the Gaza Northern Brigade's Mechanical Engineering Equipment Company, told Ynet.
This was the first exercise for the company, which became operational over a year ago. The troops used the heavy machinery to practice opening safe routes for infantry and armored infantry units and dealing with land mines, roadside bombs, antitank missiles and mortar shell barrages. The drill took place at the Tzeelim base.
Combat Engineering Corps' equipment (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Office)The IDF is bracing for the possibility that the next operation in the Gaza Strip might meet a response more violent than what Operation Cast Lead had seen. To prepare for such a scenario, the bulldozers have been equipped with innovative protective equipment, including antitank missile alert systems.
"On a daily basis we deal with opening safe routes, clearing territories and building defensive posts for our forces," Yakobovich said. "This time we practiced operating at nighttime... while staying in the field for a long period of time."
The Gaza Division's engineering officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Yaron Malka, noted that the special exercise has been planned a year in advance.
"The engineering equipment will be the first to enter Gaza and the last to leave, as it has been done in the past," he said. "This is why it's very important to maintain commanders and operators well trained."
Source: YnetNews
