Israeli tank rolls across highway as crew falls asleep insideJanuary 16, 2019 - 11:02 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - In what the Israel Defense Force is calling a “severe safety violation,” a 65-ton Merkava battle tank rolled across a major Israeli highway Sunday, January 13. Where was its crew? Fast asleep inside the armored vehicle, Sputnik International reports. The IDF has launched an investigation into how a tank crew from Shizafon base fell asleep inside their Merkava-4 tank and put it into reverse, winding up 600 meters from where they should have been, on the other side of the busy Route 40 highway. The incident happened Sunday during a tank commander's course in the Negev Desert, about 46 miles north of the resort city of Eilat, the Times of Israel reported. The bizarre episode rounded off a week of field exercises. According to Haaretz, the tank crew's commander had gotten out of the tank to go to the bathroom and when he came back 20 minutes later, he found the tank was missing. Arutz Sheva noted that all other precautions had been taken, including locking the tank's turret into position. The Merkava Mark IV is the newest generation of the Israeli line of main battle tanks, with 360 produced for the Israeli army since 2003. An IDF spokesperson said nobody had been hurt, but that the tank had narrowly missed a group of soldiers when Yahweh took the wheel. However, they're now investigating the "unusual security incident… to learn the lessons in order to prevent a recurrence of similar incidents in the future." Photo. AFP 2018 / JACK GUEZ Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. U.S. welcomes efforts to define Armenia-Azerbaijan border The United States welcomes efforts to define the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, says Vedant Patel. Biden honors resilience of Armenian people on April 24 U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a statement on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. |