What is the Israeli Iron Dome? | The Middle East, the eternal conflict

Over the past few days, Hamas has fired thousands of rockets at Israel. Most of them were destroyed in mid-air by Iron Dome. How does this powerful defense system work? Interpretation in six questions.

1. What is Iron Dome?

This is an anti-missile defense system that allows enemy targets to be bombed in mid-flight.

The dome consists of dozens of anti-aircraft batteries. These batteries, towed by trucks, are equipped with a missile launcher, radar and control system.

The anti-aircraft battery covers a radius of 155 square kilometers. The batteries that form the dome are strategically located across the country, providing coverage of almost the entire Israeli sky.

When the radar detects an enemy rocket or rocket, the computer quickly calculates its trajectory and point of impact. If the shell falls on a populated area, the anti-aircraft battery fires two missiles to destroy it. If the device should fall into the sea or an uninhabited area, it is left to explode on land.

The radar can detect the missile at a distance between 4 and 70 kilometers.

Each battery is equipped with three or four launchers, each containing 20 missiles.

2. How long has it been used?

Iron Dome was designed after the 2006 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. Thousands of rockets were fired at Israel from Lebanon, causing massive damage and killing dozens of civilians.

Therefore, Israel authorized the Public Defense Company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems To develop an anti-missile shield.

The first interception took place in April 2011; Then the system shot down a missile fired at the city of Beersheba in the southern Gaza Strip.

The system was first used near the Gaza Strip, then was deployed in the north of the country, on the border with Lebanon, and around Tel Aviv.

Since 2011, Iron Dome has intercepted thousands of rockets.

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3. Did the Hamas attack succeed in bypassing Iron Dome?

The effectiveness of Iron Dome is estimated at 90%, according to the Israeli Ministry of Defense. In 2018, one researcher estimated (A new window) The effectiveness may not be as high as the Israeli government claims. Moreover, it emphasizes that the system is not infallible.

In particular, Iron Dome does not successfully intercept projectiles fired at very low altitudes with the same accuracy.

In addition, the system is less effective when facing a large amount of enemy fire; Iron Dome can reach saturation point with rocket flow.

For this reason, the regime had more difficulty responding to the thousands of missiles that were fired over a short period of time last weekend. This was also the case in 2021, when Hamas fired waves of hundreds of rockets per minute.

Finally, we must remember that this air defense system is designed to respond to short-range threats and not to guided weapons. So, if Hezbollah or Hamas used precision-guided munitions, they could escape Iron Dome.

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4. How much does this system cost?

The cost of each anti-missile battery is about US$100 million, and each interceptor missile is about US$50,000.

Iron Dome was originally developed without US help, but in 2011 the Americans began supporting the program financially. In return, the US Congress demanded technology sharing and joint production. Today, some anti-missile batteries are manufactured in the United States by Raytheon.

The United States’ support for developing this system comes within a broad program of military aid to Israel whose value, according to an agreement between the two countries, amounts to 38 billion US dollars between 2019 and 2028. (A new window).

From 2011 to 2021, the United States invested a total of US$1.6 billion in Israel’s Iron Dome. In September 2021 (A new window)An additional budget of one billion US dollars was approved for the dome.

5. What other means does Israel use to protect its borders?

While Iron Dome plays a major role in Israel’s air defense, it is not the only anti-aircraft system deployed by Israel. The system is particularly used by Israeli Defense The ropes of David (David’s Sling) – also known as Magic wand (Magic Wand) – which can destroy short- and medium-range ballistic missiles (70 to 250 kilometers), cruise missiles and other large-caliber missiles. There is also the Arrow-3 system, which can intercept ballistic missiles outside the atmosphere and has a range of 2,400 kilometers.

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6. What countries have this type of system?

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Many countries have purchased or are considering purchasing radar components or the entire Iron Dome.

In 2019, the United States announced that it would purchase and test a version of Iron Dome (A new window) To complement the Patriot missile defense system. The latter intercepts aircraft, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles, unlike Iron Dome, which intercepts short-range weapons.

Azerbaijan (A new window) She reportedly purchased a copy of Israel’s Iron Dome in May 2021.

In June 2021, South Korean Govt (A new window) It announced its intention to allocate more than US$2.5 billion for research and development to create and implement a peninsula defense system by 2035.

In January 2021, Slovakia (A new window) It announced an agreement with Israel to acquire 17 radar systems at a cost of US$182 million.

Recently, Germany (A new window) Israel signed a deal worth US$3.5 billion to purchase the Arrow-3 missile defense system. Finland (A new window) It also announced in the spring of 2023 the acquisition of the system The ropes of David In the amount of 345 million US dollars. In 2018, the UK also acquired the technology used in Iron Dome to create its system Sky Saber.

Elsewhere in Europe, Romania and Hungary have expressed interest in the system, although no contract has been announced.

In April 2016, the Singapore Ministry of Defence (A new window) It announced the purchase of the ELM-2084 Multi-Mission Radar (MMR) system used in Iron Dome.

In 2015, the Canadian Ministry of Defence (A new window) It announced the purchase of radar technology used in Israel’s Iron Dome.