Israel’s Iron Dome interceptor system shot down 97 percent of the Palestinian rockets it engaged over the weekend, the military said, an improvement over the US-backed system’s performance, Reuters reported.
Iron Dome, which first went live in 2011 and fires guided missiles to hit incoming missiles and other short-range threats in the air, has been rated 85 percent successful by Israeli and U.S. defense officials. This figure rose to 90% in a 2012 war in Gaza.
Built by state-owned Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd with the support of US company Raytheon Technologies Corp, Iron Dome is designed to save on costly interceptor missiles, engaging only missiles on track to hit populated areas.
It has intercepted 97 percent of them during a resurgence of fighting with Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighters in Gaza since Friday, an Israeli military spokesman said, calling it the system’s best performance yet. “We are constantly improving our capabilities,” the spokesperson said.
Islamic Jihad has fired 580 rockets at Israel by Sunday morning, the spokesman said, adding that about 20 percent fell inside Gaza, while the rest reached the outskirts of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.
Source: Capital
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