Mosquito Attack

Ever since the war on Lebanon started, countless people (including myself) have heard a shivering noise in the sky - a horrific sound. It reminds you of that tiny little blood-thirsty mosquito which flies next to your ear while you are about to fall asleep. But that sound is not coming anywhere from the room, its coming high from the sky. And no common household mosquito repellent can get rid of it. But what is it?
It's a UAV, also known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. Israel has deployed hundreds of such drones in the Lebanese skies to gather intelligence from the ground. Just the other day, as I was watching a movie at home in the Sanayeh neighborhood in Beirut, I suddenly heard that distinctive buzzing sound. It was flying in circles over the area for easily 40-minutes, sending back images to Israeli command centers. I thought to myself maybe I should 'moon' the sky hoping an Israeli officer would comprehend what real Lebanese hospitality is all about.
The Israeli army has dozens of UAV's on hand, from miniscule ones which weigh 500 grams to much larger ones capable of launching precision-guided missiles straight to the enemy. However, the ones flying over Beirut are reconnaissance and target-acquisition drones only (hopefully).
The Israeli drones can remain in the air for up to 30 hours. They are equipped with a color nose camera, a daytime-applicable TV lens, a variable infrared camera for low light and night, and a synthetic radar for looking through smoke, clouds or haze. The cameras produce full motion video as well as still frame radar images and can see straight through buildings.
Israel has been using drones over Lebanon for quite some time. The first reported use was in 1982 when Israel launched the Scout during Operation Peace for Galilee. The IDF then moved on and started using a more sophisticated and larger drone in 1992, the Searcher.
Its unsure which drones are flying over Beirut, but judging by the sound, the UAV's should be medium-sized. This would narrow down the type either to the Searcher II, the Hermes 180 or the Hermes 450 (the latest generation and most advanced Israeli drone).
Israel is also equipped with a suicidal drone, called the Harpy. This explosive-laden drone is capable of detecting radar posts throughout enemy territory and literally projects itself into it - a far more economical mission than sending F-16s to do the job.
In the south of Lebanon, it seems the UAVs are fully armed. On July 26, the Jpost reported that the IAF stopped an Israeli UAV from killing Israeli troops. A senior Air Force officer said that the UAV opened fire on ground troops operating in Bint Jbeil after receiving the coordinates from the Golani Brigade. Israel has been utilizing a secret drone in Gaza to counter the threat of mortars and Qassam rockets Hamas regularly launches at the Jewish communities of Gaza. The pilotless drone identifies and takes out militants and their equipment before they can fire the rockets, senior Israeli security sources said.
The Israel Air Force once fired three missiles at two teams of Palestinian militants planning a mortar attack in a Gaza refugee camp. Palestinian residents told reporters Israeli drones fired the missiles near where a group of militants was gathering. The IDF only confirmed that missiles destroyed both launchers, but would not reveal which kind of aircraft was used in the operation.
Drones have become so widely integrated within the Israeli military that they have also been used in the past to protect Ariel Sharon from possible assassination attempts.

Unbelievably, even Hizbullah is equipped with a UAV - the Mirsad -1. The UAV is a derivative of an Iranian made drone and can have a payload of up to 50kgs of explosives on board. Israel was twice stunned in 2004 when two UAVs penetrated its airspace undetected for some 20-minutes.

I think it's time for Bayer to invent a more effective mosquito repellent.
mrtez