{"id":70204,"date":"2019-05-09T17:05:05","date_gmt":"2019-05-09T15:05:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=70204"},"modified":"2019-05-08T07:42:23","modified_gmt":"2019-05-08T05:42:23","slug":"20-05-42","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=70204","title":{"rendered":"700 ROCKETS, 4 DEAD ISRAELIS"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>700 ROCKETS, 4 DEAD ISRAELIS: IS THE IRON DOME GETTING WORSE?<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n

SAM SOKOL\/JTA<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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The number of unintercepted rockets and Israeli fatalities sparked inquiry about the effectiveness of Iron Dome.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\nAn Iron Dome anti-missile system fires an interceptor missile as rockets are launched from Gaza toward Israel on August 9. (photo credit: AMIR COHEN\/REUTERS)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

TEL AVIV (JTA<\/strong><\/span><\/a>) \u2014 After the weekend\u2019s fighting between Hamas and the Israeli army, some Israelis have raised questions about the strength of their country\u2019s missile defenses.<\/span><\/p>\n

Over the course of the weekend, Hamas and Islamic Jihad launched nearly 700 rockets from Gaza at Israel, killing<\/a><\/strong><\/span> four people and injuring<\/a><\/strong><\/span> more than 200. According to Haaretz<\/strong><\/span><\/a>, of the 690 rockets launched from Gaza, Israel\u2019s Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted 240.<\/span><\/p>\n

The number of unintercepted rockets and Israeli fatalities sparked inquiry about the effectiveness of Iron Dome, and whether Hamas and Islamic Jihad have found a way to thwart the system.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hamas was quick to declare that it had achieved victory, overwhelming Israeli defenses with concentrated barrages of projectiles.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Qassam Brigades, thanks to God, succeeded in overcoming the so-called Iron Dome by adopting the tactic of firing dozens of missiles in one single burst,\u201d a spokesman for Hamas\u2019s Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades said in a social media post quoted by The Times of Israel<\/strong><\/span><\/a>. \u201cThe high intensity of fire and the great destructive ability of the missiles that were introduced by the Qassam [Brigades] \u2026 succeeded in causing great losses and destruction to the enemy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The number of Israeli civilians killed in the two-day conflict was only one fewer than during 2014\u2019s Operation Protective Edge, a struggle of nearly two months, when Palestinian factions lobbed more than 4,500 projectiles at Israeli cities.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the time, the Israel Defense Forces said that its Iron Dome batteries had managed to knock down 90 percent of the rockets within their coverage zones \u2014 a rate of success disputed by some critics. The IDF claimed a similar level of success this time, too, telling reporters that it had achieved an 86 percent kill rate and that only 35 projectiles landed in populated areas.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, speaking with The Jerusalem Post<\/strong><\/span>,<\/a> Maj. Gen. Yaakov Amidror, a former national security adviser and retired head of the Military Intelligence\u2019s Research Department, said Iron Dome had gaps in its coverage, especially when it came to short-range rockets landing within a few kilometers of the border.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t have enough time to intercept it,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Amidor also said that in the case of a car hit by an anti-tank missile near Kibbutz Yad Mordechai on Sunday, killing its Israeli driver, Iron Dome wouldn\u2019t have helped.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the point of view of the system, this was an open area without people. We don\u2019t intercept such rockets,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

A former deputy military intelligence chief, Brig. Gen. Meir Elran, said that while \u201cIron Dome has proven to be an effective means of saving lives, which also improves the flexibility of decision makers in Israel,\u201d it is clear that the system as currently constituted cannot provide Israel with sufficient protection in the event of a wider conflict.<\/span><\/p>\n

In an article<\/strong><\/span><\/a> published by the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv several weeks before the outbreak of hostilities, Elran warned that \u201cthe number of available batteries (some operated by reservists) cannot suffice as a response to the threat, even one characterized by sporadic fire against the Israeli depth. In a full-scale conflict the [Iron Dome] system would be required to cover primarily military installations and vital national infrastructures,\u201d which would mean that there would be gaps in the system\u2019s coverage of residential areas.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDuring a broad and protracted conflict,\u201d Elran wrote, there is a \u201cdanger of multiple, simultaneous events that stretch the capacity of response systems.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The IDF has been beefing up its systems. Globes reported<\/strong><\/span><\/a> that the army has been working on improvements to Iron Dome intended to deal with just the kinds of barrages used over the weekend, as well as against the kinds of short-range projectiles used to target communities along the Gaza border. In mid-April, the IDF concluded an air defense exercise combining its Iron Dome and Patriot missile batteries.<\/span><\/p>\n

Overall, the presence of Iron Dome has allowed Israel additional flexibility in choosing when it wants to escalate conflicts. The system reduces the need to send infantry troops into Gaza to stop missile fire against population centers.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite this weekend\u2019s death toll, Iron Dome acquitted itself well, Times of Israel military correspondent Judah Ari Gross told JTA. The higher than usual level of civilian casualties can be attributed to a combination of bad luck, the intensity of the barrages and Hamas\u2019 use of heavier rockets with larger payloads. Such projectiles can intensify the damage when they do get through.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIn one barrage, they fired 117 rockets toward Ashdod. One got through. Is that overwhelming the system?\u201d he asked. \u201cYou can say, yes, it is \u2014 especially as that one killed an Israeli civilian \u2014 or no, that\u2019s a 99.1 percent success rate.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The missile that did get through in Ashdod killed Pinchas Menachem Prezuazman, a 21-year old American citizen who was hit while running for cover. Even with a high level of interceptions, with enough metal flying, some are bound to get through, Gross said, adding that it was unclear exactly how the IDF had calculated its claimed 86 percent interception rate.<\/span><\/p>\n

Uzi Rubin, one of the pioneers of Israel\u2019s earliest attempts at missile defense, told JTA that based on the publicly available data, it appears that the Palestinians \u201ctried to tax the system as much as they could, but the system as a whole held well.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEighty-six percent is not much less than the 90 percent during [Operation Protective Edge], and remember this time most of the fire was concentrated on the area around Gaza, which is short range and harder to defend,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Israel doesn;t just rely on the Iron Dome to keep its citizens safe. Phone apps warn of incoming missiles, and bomb shelters and \u201csafe rooms\u201d are ubiquitous, if not always well-maintained. In his article Elran suggests that \u201cexisting plans for improving public and private shelters should be implemented in other parts of Israel.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Elran also urged the Home Front Command and municipal leaders to get on the same page when it comes to closing schools and opening public shelters, \u201cissues that continue to be disputed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Residents of southern Israel had differing opinions as to the effectiveness of the IDF\u2019s missile defenses.<\/span><\/p>\n

Raymond Reijnen<\/strong><\/span><\/a>, a Dutch immigrant whose house in Kibbutz Nahal Oz was hit by a rocket as he hid in its bomb shelter with his wife and children on Saturday, said Iron Dome\u2019s effectiveness has been exaggerated.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody thinks [it\u2019s] great, but every mortar they fired at the kibbutz landed and didn\u2019t got intercepted,\u201d he said. \u201cIron Dome is a bandage to keep the people feeling safe and protected. Don\u2019t get me wrong, it\u2019s a great system, but its capabilities are highly overestimated.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

On the other hand, Adele Raemer, a resident of Kibbutz Nirim on the Gaza border, said she did feel safer than in previous escalations.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve only had Iron Dome for about a year,\u201d she said. \u201cAs a resident, I do feel more protected now that we have [it].\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Asked for comment, the IDF said that it was unable to provide information on Iron Dome\u2019s performance or how it calculates interception rates because it was short-staffed due to Tuesday evening\u2019s Yom Hazikaron, or Memorial Day, commemorations.<\/span><\/p>\n

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700 ROCKETS, 4 DEAD ISRAELIS: IS THE IRON DOME GETTING WORSE? SAM SOKOL\/JTA The number of unintercepted rockets and Israeli fatalities sparked inquiry about the effectiveness of Iron Dome. An Iron Dome anti-missile system fires an interceptor missile as rockets are launched from Gaza toward Israel on August 9. (photo credit: AMIR COHEN\/REUTERS) TEL AVIV […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3],"tags":[26,24],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70204"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=70204"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70204\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70229,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70204\/revisions\/70229"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=70204"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=70204"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=70204"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}