Thinking outside the box

This Reuters account of a mannequin found on the beach of the Gaza Strip has an intriguing implication for all those who think the IDF has lost any of innovative edge.

GAZA, Jan 20 (Reuters) - A mannequin discovered by Palestinians on a Gaza beach may have been used by Israeli forces as a decoy to draw fire from gunmen, an Israeli military expert said.

The head-and-torso figure, dressed in an army shirt and rigged with electric wires, was described by some Palestinians as a "robot" that had helped Israeli commandos storm ashore and kill 10 Hamas guerrillas during Israel's 22-day Gaza offensive.

But Itay Gil, who trains various Israeli commando units, said the rubber dummy could have been used to dupe Palestinian snipers into opening fire so they could be identified and killed. "These dolls do exist in the Israeli Defence Forces, for the purposes of shooting drills and to simulate enemy emplacements," Gil said. "It could be that this dummy was a decoy mounted on an Israeli boat or vehicle, to draw the first volley and deny the enemy the element of surprise," he said. "Anything's possible."

An Israeli military spokeswoman declined to comment on the tactics used during the offensive, which was launched on Dec. 27 to counter Palestinian cross-border rocket salvoes.

My son suggested I not refer to it as a ‘robotic’ doll but a Joshua-type Action Figure.