The Ankara-based Turkish defense firm Troy Teknoloji Savunma has expressed its belief that the Israeli army may have used an &ldquoMK-84&rdquo bomb equipped with a &ldquoJoint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM)&rdquo device during its attack on the Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City on Tuesday.
The Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) is a guidance kit that converts unguided bombs or &ldquodumb bomb&rdquo into all-weather precision-guided munitions. The US army gave this type of guidance system to Israel a few days ago.
Troy director Sait Ersoy Bereketlioglu who examined images and footage of the Israeli attack on the hospital told Anadolu news agency on Wednesday that the sound and power of the explosion indicate that it may have been caused by a JDAM-fitted &ldquoMK-84&rdquo bomb.
Bereketlioglu added that another possibility is that Israel used a JDAM-fitted &ldquoBLU-109&rdquo penetration bomb in its attack on the hospital.
For his part Ismail Hakki Pekin former head of Turkey’s General Staff Intelligence Agency also seconded Bereketlioglu’s opinion that a JDAM-fitted &ldquoMK-84&rdquo bomb had been dropped on the hospital.
Pekin in press remarks ruled out that a rocket attack by a Palestinian resistance group could cause such an explosion.
Another Turkish military expert also told Anadolu yesterday that the Israeli attack on a hospital in Gaza was carried out with a JDAM-equipped MK-84 bomb that contains &ldquoproximity fuze&rdquo that explodes high above the ground.
A proximity fuze is a fuse that detonates an explosive device automatically when it approaches within a certain distance of its target.
The expert retired military officer and ammunition specialist Engin Yigit explained that there was a strong possibility that the attack was carried out with an MK-84 guided bomb.
Yigit said considering the images of the moment of the attack the probability that the ammunition was a JDAM-equipped 2000-pound (910-kilogram) Mark 84 (MK-84) bomb increased.
He noted that JDAM is the name of one of the guidance kits. &ldquoYou can make the bomb guided with a kit that you attach to the front or back of MAK-82 MAK-83 MAK-84 bombs.&rdquo
&ldquoJDAM is a type of kit that allows precise delivery of the bomb to the target&rdquo he said. &ldquoThe said kit attached to the bomb makes the bomb smart and provides precision strike capability.&rdquo
The expert added that there are several fuses to detonate bombs and some can explode on impact while others can explode at the desired moment and height before impact.
