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PALESTINIAN BALLOON-BORNE IED PROGRESSION By Chief Superintendent (ret.) Michael Cardash, Terrogence Senior CIED Analyst / Author of Mobius reports
PALESTINIAN BALLOON-BORNE IED PROGRESSION
By Chief Superintendent (ret.) Michael Cardash, Terrogence Senior CIED Analyst / Author of Mobius reports
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During August 2020, terrorist activity resumed along the Gaza border targeting towns in the south of Israel. 25 rockets were fired and dozens of balloon-borne IIDs and IEDs were released toward Israel.
The balloon-borne IIDs comprise small incendiary charges, most fitted with some kind of delay mechanisms, some recycled tear gas and stun grenades, filled with incendiary materials.
The recent balloon-borne IEDs released toward Israel were notable for their fragmentation components, some of which were recycled, others improvised, including IEDs dropped from the air that explode upon impact with the ground, and others that initiated at the conclusion of the delay element, either on the ground, or while still airborne, over populated areas.
On the evening of August 25, 2020, two explosions occurred as a result of balloon-borne IED initiations in the city of Netivot, in southern Israel.
The first initiated in an outdoor basketball court near where some children were playing. The point of explosion of a small IED was documented where the IED initiated.
The other IED initiated a few minutes later at a ceramics factory in the city. The IED initiation was recorded on CCTV, in which a small combustion (probably from the delay fuse) can be seen, followed by an explosion, from which a small crater was formed. Remains of an IID fitted with an electrical delay mechanism, Kiryat Gat, August 21, 2020.
Similar balloon-borne IID fashioned from a recycled grenade, fitted with a rotating striker fusing mechanism and a pyrotechnic delay fuse, Gan Yavne.
August 8, 2020 - attached IED fashioned from an improvised mortar round with added fragmentation.
The components of the IED after it was neutralized – improvised detonator with an adapter, and metal ball fragmentation.
The basketball court where the balloon-borne IED initiated, Netivot, August 25, 2020.
Close-up look at the crater formed by the blast.
CCTV documentation of the explosion at the ceramics factory.
Point of explosion.
The release of balloon-borne IEDs and IIDs from the Gaza Strip toward the south of Israel is an attack TTP that has been ongoing since May 2018, and continues intermittently to this day. In the past, when the TTP incorporated incendiary balloons released to create fires, this was considered a mere “nuisance” that only damaged property, a kind of terrorist attack “tolerated” by the Israeli government that did not warrant an aggressive or harsh response from the Israeli government.
Testaments from residents of southern Israeli cities about explosions taking place above the cities indicates larger numbers of balloon-borne IEDs have recently been released toward southern Israeli communities, most of which initiated while still attached to the balloons and before they landed.
The IEDs are fashioned from standard weaponry items, such as grenade bodies or mortar rounds, or various improvised casings. Most are connected to delay initiation mechanisms, mainly pyrotechnic systems with long delay elements at the end of which, burn fuse connected directly to a detonator is ignited.
Improvised fragmentation grenades with burn fuse.
Assorted IEDs, including a mortar round, PG-2 warhead, and improvised casings, all fitted with burn fuse.
Assorted IEDs.
IED components.
Some of the different IEDs designed for delivery via balloons are fitted with a rotating striker mechanism.
Rotating striker mechanisms were previously documented serving as a source for impact fuses for IEDs released from balloons. In the passing year, we have detected the local production of improvised impact fuses similar to the improvised impact fuses used with rockets in the past.
Impact-initiated IEDs, Gaza Strip, November 2019.
Balloon-borne Claymore-type IED ready for release toward Israel.
Recently, fragmentation IEDs resembling Claymoretype IEDs have been documented attached to balloons. These are also fitted with pyrotechnic delay fuses. These IEDs, containing directional fragmentation, pose a high risk when initiated from height above a populated urban area, as the fragmentation is dispersed downward.
Claymore-type IED connected to the bunch of balloons; fragmentation facing downward.
Claymore-type IED showing the delay element, prior to being released attached to a bunch of balloons, Gaza Strip, August 19, 2020.
The balloon-borne IEDs and IIDs utilize the forces of nature to transport their explosive/incendiary payloads to Israel. The balloons are generally released around midday, taking advantage of the prevailing winds blowing from west to east that move inland from the Mediterranean Sea at noon. The balloon-borne IID phenomenon was first introduced in the summer months, when the fields were dry and the potential for setting fires was high, while in the rainy winter days, no attempts were made to launch any balloons.
Similar to the progression of their rocket attacks, the Gazan terrorist groups are developing other types of attacks employed against Israel, cleverly blurring the red line for an Israeli response by subtly promoting a complacency strategy. At first, their rockets were small and short-range, and were considered by Israeli statesmen “as flying pieces of metal” that caused little or no damage. Later, as the ranges and quantity of explosives in the warheads increased, as long as the rockets landed in open areas and there were no casualties, there was no response to the attacks, until the quantities and size of the weapons became a serious threat to populated areas in the country.
Similar to the rockets, at first, the balloon-borne IIDs were considered a “nuisance” weapon employed between spring until early winter that caused only fire damage, with no loss of life. In keeping with the abovementioned complacency strategy, the transition to balloon-borne IEDs was merely a matter of time. The first balloon-borne IEDs contained no fragmentation and did not cause serious damage or loss of life. This evolution to balloon-borne fragmentation IEDs, some initiated from the air over populated areas, with others landing in cities or towns before initiating at the conclusion of the delay element indicates a progressive and advanced stage in both the ability to perpetrate the attack in any season, and to cause casualties among the population.
In our estimation, it is only a matter of time until there are fatalities in the next round of balloon-borne IED attacks, based on the progression of the IED development, especially the Claymore-type IEDs rigged to explode over populated areas, which will lead to a severe military response against this phenomenon. ■
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chief Superintendent (ret.)
Michael Cardash, Senior bomb technician and former deputy head of the Israeli police bomb disposal division, commanded bomb disposal units within the border guards and police during intense terrorist conflicts in Israel. Michael currently is the senior CIED analyst at Terrogence, researches IED’s and authors the Terrogence Möbius C-IED reports analyzing and assessing global IEDrelated technical and tactical intelligence.
