The World - News from May 4, 1989

Israel’s army unveiled a new tank its inventors say will “remain forever young” because of an armor system that can be replaced, even on the battlefield. Army commanders said the thick-skinned Merkava Mark 3 can survive anything an enemy infantry can throw at it. “The Mark 3 is a step ahead of any tank deployed in the Middle East now,” Brig. Gen. Yossi Ben Hanan said, adding it was on a par with the new Soviet T-80 and the U.S. M-1A1. The Merkava, which means “chariot” in Hebrew, has a back door that allows the tank to unload an infantry squad during battle and a front-mounted engine that doubles as additional armor.