by The Associated Press and Israel Hayom Staff
Skystar 180 aerostat system gives police a "third dimension" in efforts to quell tensions • Imam of Al-Aqsa mosque: "It is practically over the houses. It violates the privacy of people" • Balloons can be airborne for 72 hours, carry sensitive cameras.
The Skystar aerostat
surveillance system, which the Israeli police recently started using in
Jerusalem to track clashes
|
Photo credit: AP  |
In the face of Jerusalem's worst wave of
violence in nearly a decade, Israeli police are watching from above in
their attempts to keep control in the city.
Police have been flying surveillance balloons
over the city's eastern sector and Old City -- the location of its most
sensitive holy sites -- to monitor protests and move in on them quickly.
They say the puffy white balloons, which carry a rotating spherical
camera pod, have greatly helped quell the unrest. But the eyes in the
sky are unnerving Palestinians.
"They want to discover everything that's going
on. [They see] who is going, who is coming, who is that person," said
Imad Muna, who works at a local bookstore.
The Israeli company that makes the Skystar 180
aerostat system says the balloons can stay in the air for 72 hours and
carry highly sensitive cameras.
Rami Shmueli, the CEO of RT LTA Systems Ltd.,
said his company gives police a "third dimension" in their quest to
quell tensions in east Jerusalem, where they have been clashing
regularly with masked youths hurling rocks and firebombs.
"We give them an aerial view of the streets
and those people who are throwing stones, we can detect them even if
they hide behind buildings or in gardens," said Shmueli. "When we see
them and when we see their activity, we can direct the police forces to
their location. And even if they escape we can follow them and make sure
that police catch them."
Over the past month, 11 people have been
killed in Palestinian attacks, including last Tuesday's massacre in a
Jerusalem synagogue that left four worshippers and one policeman dead.
Most of the violence has occurred in Jerusalem, along with deadly
attacks in Tel Aviv and Judea and Samaria.
The violence has been connected in large part to continuing unrest on the Temple Mount.
The helium-filled balloons were successfully
used in Israel's Operation Protective Edge against Hamas in the Gaza
Strip last summer.
While various types of surveillance blimps
have been used in the Jerusalem area for years, police spokesman Micky
Rosenfeld said a strategic decision was recently made to increase their
use as part of a broader effort to incorporate the latest technologies.
He said police currently have four
surveillance balloons deployed over Jerusalem, including one that
monitors the Old City and its volatile holy sites, and others over Arab
neighborhoods that have experienced unrest. Since the aerial deployment,
he said there has been a marked decrease in street violence.
"It is tremendously important and gives us a
360-degree view of what is going on," Rosenfeld said. "Our units can
respond a lot quicker, a lot faster and much more effectively."
The Skystar system is currently also deployed
in Afghanistan, Mexico, Thailand, Canada, Russia, in various countries
in Africa and was used for security at the World Cup in Brazil, the
company says.
The balloons are part of a broad collection of
surveillance equipment that includes security cameras throughout the
city, including 320 of them in the Old City -- as well as undercover
units, riot-control forces and intelligence gathering.
Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, the imam of Al-Aqsa
mosque, said Palestinians are well accustomed to the aerial surveillance
of mass prayers each Friday. But he said the new surveillance over
residential areas is a problem.
"It is practically over the houses. It
violates the privacy of people. There are women in the houses and these
machines can photograph them," he said.
Saleem Mohtaseb, a resident of Shuafat, an
Arab neighborhood that has experienced frequent unrest, said the cameras
have further frayed people's nerves. "I asked my wife to close the
curtains whenever she sees it in the sky. I know many people who have
done the same," he said.
The Associated Press and Israel Hayom Staff
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=21761
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
No comments:
Post a Comment