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发帖数: 29846 | 1 Israel's 'Iron Dome' changes the face of battle
July 10, 2014 - 3:35 PM
By ARON HELLER, Associated Press
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's "Iron Dome" defense system has emerged as a game-
changer in the current round of violence with Hamas militants in the Gaza
Strip, shooting down dozens of incoming rockets and being credited with
preventing numerous civilian casualties.
By shooting down more than 90 percent of its targets, the system is ensuring
Israel's decisive technological edge that has helped it operate virtually
unhindered in Gaza.
At the same time, it's also providing a much-needed sense of security on the
home front.
Gaza militants have fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, some more than
100 kilometers (60 miles) deep, covering an area of about 5 million. But
beyond some jitters and discomfort, they haven't hurt Israelis much, causing
no casualties and very little damage.
"The Iron Dome system and its impressive success thus far have had a
strategic impact on managing the campaign. It gives us wide options," said
Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon. "Having said that, we cannot become
complacent."
Israel has deployed seven batteries across the country that — coupled with
a high-tech warning system — have given it its best defensive capabilities
ever.
Iron Dome quickly recognizes the trajectory of incoming rockets and whether
they are headed for major population centers. Those are shot down, while
others are allowed to fall in empty fields to spare the hefty cost of firing
the sophisticated interceptors. Local reports say each launching costs
about $20,000.
So far, Hamas and other Gaza militants have fired more than 420 rockets
toward Israel in three days of fighting. The military says it has shot down
90 of those, including several over Tel Aviv and central Israel.
On Thursday afternoon, the system was deployed for the first time in
Jerusalem. Two puffs of smoke could be seen in the sky — apparently after
intercepting two incoming rockets.
Lt. Col. Levi Itach, head of the military's early warning branch, said
several high-tech measures along with a disciplined public that has
vigilantly followed instruction have allowed Israel to keep its casualties
from rockets to a minimum.
He said the systems had improved significantly in the two years since the
last major exchange of airstrikes and rocket fire between Israel and Hamas,
in which six Israelis were killed and several were injured by Gaza rocket
fire in that weeklong battle.
The system is still far from foolproof. On Thursday, rockets struck a home
in the southern city of Beersheba and a car in Ashdod — incidents that
easily could have resulted in casualties.
Itach said no system could provide 100 percent protection.
"If we keep up what we are doing, there is a good chance that we will be
able to lower the ratio to one death for every 10,000 rockets fired," he
said.
Yossi Kuperwasser, a retired military general and current director general
of Israel's Ministry of Strategic Affairs, said that Gaza's Hamas rulers and
other militants have acquired longer, more powerful weapons in the past two
years, but Israel had not been idle either. He said improvements to Iron
Dome have allowed it to hold off on a ground operation while the home front
was protected.
"It gives us much more room to maneuver. ... Now we have the ability to hold
our breath for some time," he said. "And I'm sure that Hamas is feeling
frustrated with this situation because after launching hundreds of rockets,
they haven't managed to get Israeli casualties."
Newspapers have already crowned the U.S.-funded system as the star of the
campaign. The front page of Yediot Ahronot carried the headline "Golden Dome
," with a huge spread of the system in action. The paper's top military
columnist, Alex Fishman, wrote that the Iron Dome has "changed the face of
the battle."
"If not for the Iron Dome system, the entire military would have already
been stuck in the Gaza Strip. It is already possible to reflect on the main
lesson of Operation Protective Edge: we must not stop investing in the Iron
Dome system," he wrote.
Iron Dome is just the first of a planned three-part defense system that
Israel hopes will be operational by the end of the year.
It has successfully tested "Magic Wand," designed to intercept projectiles
with ranges between 70 kilometers (45 miles) and 300 kilometers (180 miles),
and is aimed primarily at countering the large arsenal of Hezbollah rockets
in Lebanon and those of President Bashar Assad's government in Syria.
Together with the Arrow system for longer-range threats from Iran, the three
components will complete what Israel calls its "multilayer missile defense."
The next generation of the Arrow, now in the development stage, is set to be
deployed in 2016. Called Arrow 3, it is designed to intercept missiles at
very high altitudes, before they are on their downward path toward their
target. Together, the two Arrow systems would provide two chances to strike
down incoming missiles.
Just this week, President Barack Obama cited the systems as proof of the U.S
. commitment to Israel's security.
"Across the board, our unprecedented security cooperation is making Israel
safer and American investments in Israel's cutting-edge defense systems like
the Arrow interceptor system and Iron Dome are saving lives," he wrote. |
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