Remote-controlled ground systems in Gaza help destroy new terror tunnels

The need became urgent as Hamas is using a large number of anti-tank weapons and buried explosives on the roads that Israeli forces use. According to the IDF, the number of such attacks surprised the forces fighting inside the Gaza Strip.

The platforms now in focus are the D-9 bulldozers used to open safe roads by ploughing the surface to expose explosives, and the old M-113 personnel carriers, which are not protected and used for logistics. The protection level of the old M-113 is very low, which is why these platforms have been decommissioned. The IDF plans to use the decommissioned M-113 to operate remote-controlled logistic convoys.

While the currently selected type is manned, the long-term plan is to equip these combat vehicles with the capability for autonomous action, according to the Israeli Ministry of Defence.

The development, according to sources in the defence industry, progressed slowly, but when the war broke out on October 7, the need for remote-controlled D-9s became urgent. Currently, they are operating successfully in the combat zone in Gaza.

The M-113s are still being tested in military training areas in Israel and are being prepared for their new assignment. Israeli defence sources said that the D-9 and the M-113 will be remotely controlled until the autonomous mode is deemed safe.

“We are testing the two platforms to learn how safe it is to give them full autonomy,” one source said. This testing is being done using special simulators that create “digital twins” of the actual fighting area. The simulators create very complicated situations, typical of a combat zone, to learn how the fully autonomous systems cope with them. According to the source, the safety of the soldiers is the highest priority.