The Iron Dome In Israel Took On 5,000 Rockets Launched By Hamas: What Is It?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared war against Palestinian militants after they launched a surprise attack on his country on Saturday. The Palestinian militant group Hamas, the group that rules Gaza, led the deadly, multi-front attack that left at least 500 people dead.

Reuters

What happened?

In a rare public statement, Mohammed Deif, head of the Palestinian group¡¯s military wing al-Qassam Brigades announced the group had fired over 5,000 rockets in the ¡°first strike of 20 minutes¡± under ¡®Operation Al-Aqsa Flood¡¯.

In addition, the militant group also launched ground attacks, infiltrating military bases and overrunning parts of two southern Israel towns, reportedly taking hostages in the process.

AP

All about the Iron Dome

Significantly, several of the rockets that were sent towards Israel were intercepted by the Iron Dome ¡ª an air defence system meant especially for this purpose ¡ª although some did find their mark.

In a statement, Israel¡¯s army said it was fighting the militants who entered the country by land, sea and air using paragliders. ¡°It was a combined ground raid which happened through paragliders, through the sea and through the ground,¡± Israeli army spokesman Richard Hecht told reporters.

Nic Robertson, an editor at CNN, shared an undated video on X early Sunday morning (IST) of the Iron Dome, Israel¡¯s air defence system, intercepting rockets ¡°coming in from Gaza¡±.

Near #Gaza - exploding above our heads - #Israel¡¯s Iron Dome missiles intercept Hamas rockets pic.twitter.com/64Xe0NOFDW

¡ª Nic Robertson (@NicRobertsonCNN) October 8, 2023

What is the Iron Dome?

The Iron Dome is Israel¡¯s air missile defense system that can defend against short-range rockets, intercepting them in the air above the state. According to Israel¡¯s Ministry of Defense, it¡¯s capable of successfully handling multiple rockets at a time.

Developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries, the system became operational in March 2011 and performed its first interception of a rocket from Gaza in April 2011. Since then, it¡¯s intercepted thousands of rockets. The system was designed to respond to threats from Gaza and Southern Lebanon.

¡°The system has successfully prevented countless rockets from hitting Israeli communities,¡± the ministry wrote online.

Reuters

How does it work?

The Iron Dome has three main systems that work together to provide a shield over the area where it is deployed, handling multiple threats. It has a detection and tracking radar to spot any incoming threats, a battle management and weapon control system (BMC), and a missile firing unit.

The BMC basically liaises between the radar and the interceptor missile. It is capable of being used in all weather conditions, including during the day and night. The Iron Dome must be reloaded to continuously intercept incoming missiles.

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