Iran fired 181 long-range ballistic missiles at Israel on Tuesday, each capable of killing dozens in a single strike. But, according to Israel Defense Forces’s spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, after the millions of Israelis emerged from the air raid shelters where they had hunkered down, he was not aware of a single casualty.
How? The answer lies in Israel’s multi-layered missile defense system, built with the assistance of the United States.
Tim Ripley, a military analyst and editor of the Defence Eye website, said Israel’s different missile defense systems come under the umbrella of a single structure.
He told The Epoch Times: “The key thing is that all these different systems are integrated into a coherent network. They recognize that no one system has everything covered.”
Ripley said ballistic missiles go into space before dropping down. The first line of defense—known as the Arrow system—fires missiles that takes them out at the top of their trajectory. Then the next layer—David’s Sling—will target them in “mid-atmosphere”. Those that make it through past this layer will be intercepted by the Iron Dome system, more commonly known for shooting down rockets fired by Hezbollah and Hamas.
He said the overriding structure relied on AI-driven algorithms.
“These AI-driven algorithms work out the trajectories of these missiles, estimate where they’re going to land, and then allocate specific batteries of missiles to intercept them with the best chance. So, it’s very advanced AI algorithms that process all this information, particularly if you’ve got 100 missiles in the air at once,” Ripley told The Epoch Times.
He pointed out the comparison between Israel and Ukraine.
“The Ukrainians don’t have as big an air defense network, they don’t have as many missiles to fight back with, and stuff gets through,” said Ripley.
The Pentagon said that the U.S. Navy also assisted the Israelis in shooting down some of the missiles, and that the U.S. and some other allies were able to plug into the Israeli system.
So what are Israel’s missile defense systems?
Iron Dome
Iron Dome, which was developed by Israel with U.S. support, is the most well known of the systems.
It specializes in shooting down projectiles fired at short range, and has been used countless times to defend against Hamas rockets fired from the Gaza strip and Hezbollah attacks from southern Lebanon.
It has intercepted thousands of rockets and Israel says it has a success rate of over 90 percent.
But it has a limited range of around 45 miles.
David’s Sling
Named after the Biblical character’s famous weapon which killed Goliath, David’s Sling is a rocket system designed to intercept medium-range missiles.
David’s Sling fires interceptors, known as the Stunner or SkyCeptor, at incoming missiles. Each interceptor is worth at least $1 million.
It was also developed with assistance from the United States.
David’s Sling has been mainly used to bring down Hezbollah rockets fired from southern Lebanon and aimed at Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, a distance of around 100 miles. It has a range of up to 185 miles.
The Arrow
The Arrow system was designed to intercept long-range ballistic missiles, such as those which were fired at it by Iran on Oct. 1.
The newest iteration, Arrow 3, has a range of 1,490 miles and has also been used to take down missiles fired by the pro-Iran Houthi rebels in Yemen.
Only missiles fired from eastern Iran are beyond its range.
On April 13, 2024, Arrow 3 was used to great effect during what Iran called Operation True Promise.
The Iranians fired 120 missiles, 170 drones and 30 cruise missiles at Israel, in retaliation for the Israeli bombing of their embassy in Damascus.
Israel said the attack was successfully thwarted, with 99 percent of the missiles and drones shot down and no casualties.
But the Institute for the Study of War said, in an article published in April: “The attack probably helped Iran identify the relative strengths and the weaknesses of the Israeli air defense system.”
It added, “The only Iranian missiles that got through hit an Israeli military base, limiting the damage, but a future strike in which several ballistic missiles penetrate Israeli air defenses and hit Tel Aviv or Haifa could cause significant civilian casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure, including ports and energy.”
Patriot
The oldest layer of missile defense is the Patriot system, which was first used in 1991 to intercept Scud missiles which were fired by Iraq’s then leader, Saddam Hussein, during the first Gulf War.
Nowadays it it also used to shoot down drones but it could also intercept planes, should the Iranian air force dare to attack Israel.
Iron Beam
Israel is constantly developing new systems, with U.S. funding and technical support, to intercept emerging threats.
The newest system, which is still in development, is called Iron Beam and, as its name suggests, is based on laser beam technology.
Israel says the high energy laser (HEL) weapon will be a game changer, and much cheaper to operate.
Rafael, the Israeli firm which is building Iron Beam, says, “It quickly and effectively engages and neutralizes a wide array of threats from a range of hundreds of meters to several kilometers.”
“Engaging at the speed of light, Iron Beam has an unlimited magazine, with almost zero cost per interception, and causes minimal collateral damage,” it adds.
In 2022 The Times of Israel reported Lockheed Martin had signed a deal with Rafael to develop Iron Beam.
Lockheed Martin’s COO, Frank St. John was quoted as saying, “This unique capability will enhance Israel’s vital air and missile defense system with state-of-the-art laser technology, and we are honored by the opportunity to expand Lockheed Martin’s role as a security teammate for the state of Israel.”
A promotional video by Rafael on YouTube shows a live field test which was carried out in March 2022.
In Aug. 2024 the Jerusalem Post said Rafael’s CEO Yoav Tourgeman was hoping Iron Beam would become operational next year.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
From The Epoch Times