Secret Israeli missile test broadcast via civilian satellite
Added Link Origin: http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/story.jsp?story=461228
07.11.2003 12.20 pm By JUSTIN HUGGLER in Jerusalem
In an extraordinary and highly embarrassing blunder, a secret Israeli missile test attended by senior generals was broadcast live via a civilian satellite whose signals could be picked up with an ordinary household satellite dish, it has emerged.
The broadcast could be watched in countries across the region, from Libya to Iran, using a simple one-metre dish of the sort that comes with most satellite subscription services.
The incident, which the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth yesterday called "one of the most embarrassing fiascos ever to happen to the security establishment," was revealed after a technician working for Israel's Channel 10 television inadvertently tuned into the broadcast while conducting a routine scan of satellite frequencies.
The network recorded the footage, and broadcast parts of it on its nightly news.
The test was carried out by the arms manufacturer Israeli Aircraft Industries (IAI), which described the missile in a statement as a "long-range and accurate artillery projectile".
IAI insisted the missile test had nothing to do with the Israeli army's defence systems. But three senior Israeli generals were present, including the deputy chief of staff, General Gabi Ashkenazi -- an IAI spokesman said it was routine to invite army commanders in the hope they would buy new missiles.
The incident is a major embarrassment to the Israeli security establishment, which is responsible for safeguarding information of this sort.
The Israeli Defence Ministry said that no classified information had been revealed in the broadcasts. But Channel 10 claimed sensitive information was inadvertently broadcast.
According to Israeli press reports yesterday, the military establishment pressured the station not to run the report, and insisted the final edit be submitted to Israel's military sensor, who ordered significant portions to be repressed.
The accidental broadcast came about after a camera was set up to film the missile launch control room. It is not clear why these pictures were broadcast unencrypted via a civilian satellite. But, as a result, what went out by satellite included not only pictures of the launch itself being relayed by a monitor, but also the people present in the control room, and their conversations.
Added Link Origin: http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/story.jsp?story=461228
07.11.2003 12.20 pm By JUSTIN HUGGLER in Jerusalem
In an extraordinary and highly embarrassing blunder, a secret Israeli missile test attended by senior generals was broadcast live via a civilian satellite whose signals could be picked up with an ordinary household satellite dish, it has emerged.
The broadcast could be watched in countries across the region, from Libya to Iran, using a simple one-metre dish of the sort that comes with most satellite subscription services.
The incident, which the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth yesterday called "one of the most embarrassing fiascos ever to happen to the security establishment," was revealed after a technician working for Israel's Channel 10 television inadvertently tuned into the broadcast while conducting a routine scan of satellite frequencies.
The network recorded the footage, and broadcast parts of it on its nightly news.
The test was carried out by the arms manufacturer Israeli Aircraft Industries (IAI), which described the missile in a statement as a "long-range and accurate artillery projectile".
IAI insisted the missile test had nothing to do with the Israeli army's defence systems. But three senior Israeli generals were present, including the deputy chief of staff, General Gabi Ashkenazi -- an IAI spokesman said it was routine to invite army commanders in the hope they would buy new missiles.
The incident is a major embarrassment to the Israeli security establishment, which is responsible for safeguarding information of this sort.
The Israeli Defence Ministry said that no classified information had been revealed in the broadcasts. But Channel 10 claimed sensitive information was inadvertently broadcast.
According to Israeli press reports yesterday, the military establishment pressured the station not to run the report, and insisted the final edit be submitted to Israel's military sensor, who ordered significant portions to be repressed.
The accidental broadcast came about after a camera was set up to film the missile launch control room. It is not clear why these pictures were broadcast unencrypted via a civilian satellite. But, as a result, what went out by satellite included not only pictures of the launch itself being relayed by a monitor, but also the people present in the control room, and their conversations.
