HAIFA, Israel, July 2 (UPI) -- Israel is concerned that cargo ships could be attacked in a future conflict with Hezbollah, the militant Shiite movement in Lebanon, a senior navy officer said.
"People have not internalized what it means that 99 percent of what we import as a country comes by sea," the unnamed officer told The Jerusalem Post.
Attacks on cargo ships would "have economic and security ramifications" and would be "the first and primary challenge we will need to confront," the officer said.
"Hezbollah has already proven that it can fire missiles, so the operational capability exists as does the readiness to act," he said.
The officer referred to the Second Lebanon War in 2006 when Hezbollah attackers fired a missile at an Israeli corvette, killing four sailors, and another missile that sank a cargo freighter.
Hezbollah is believed to have a significant arsenal of Chines-developed, radar-guided missiles including the C-802, the newspaper said.
