Israel’s ‘Iron Beam’, which is designed to use high-powered lasers to deflect projectiles, will be operational within a year, according to reports. The Israeli Defense Ministry said the laser defense system would complement the country’s Iron Dome and other defense systems, ushering in a “new era of warfare”.
Costing Israel more than $500 million, Iron Beam will shoot down and disable missiles, drones, rockets and mortars at a time when the country is at war with Hamas in Palestine and Hezbollah in Iran. Retaliatory attacks between the three countries have caused widespread destruction, most recently the residence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the coastal city of Caesarea.
Developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Elbit Systems, the architects of Israel’s Iron Dome, the Iron Beam can attack at distances ranging from hundreds of meters to several kilometers at the speed of light. Its magazine is unlimited, the cost per interception is almost zero and there is minimal collateral damage.
Israel’s Defense Ministry said the Iron Beam would shoot down smaller projectiles, while larger targets such as ballistic missiles would be dealt with by the Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 interceptors. Experts said the system would heat up and destroy targets, including drones, which are small, light and have low radar signatures, making them difficult targets for Iron Dome. cnn,
Additionally, the system would operate at a fraction of the cost of operating Iron Dome. The Institute for National Security Studies, a Tel Aviv think tank, said each interceptor missile fired by Iron Dome costs about $50,000.
However, the system does not work well in low visibility conditions, including bad weather.
Meanwhile, the United States said it would deploy B-52 bombers, fighter jets, refueling aircraft and naval destroyers to the Middle East, in an adjustment of military assets as the Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group prepares to leave the area. The latest adjustment in US forces in the region follows a direct exchange of fire between Israel and Iran in October.
Israel has been fighting a two-front war since late September, against Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon and against Hamas, which started the Gaza war by attacking Israel on October 7 last year. Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack killed 1,206 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures. Israel’s retaliatory military campaign has killed 43,259 people in Gaza, most of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry, which the United Nations considers reliable.
Mediators from the US, Egypt and Qatar have tried for months to broker a ceasefire and a hostage exchange in Gaza.
