Israel Hypes New US-Funded Missile Defense as Better Than Anything US Has

Israeli Military Has Long Touted Dubious 'Success' of Previous Systems

Israeli officials responsible for developing a new multi-billion dollar missile defense system are hyping the system, paid for in large measure by massive US subsidies, as by far the best system to ever exist, saying “even the United States doesn’t have anything as complex, as sophisticated.”

The exact timetable for getting the new systems operational isn’t public, and the Defense Ministry would only say that some major components on order from US military contractors are scheduled to be delivered “over the course of several weeks.”

The system is nominally targeted at Hezbollah, citing Israeli speculation that they might conceivably get a hold of Syrian missiles over the course of the ongoing Syrian Civil War. Though Israel claims Hezbollah have 100,000 rockets , they are not generally believed to be particular advanced.

Israel has heavily hyped their Iron Dome system in the past as being preposterously successful at shooting down primitive missiles, with some analysts noting that claimed success rates far exceed the theoretically best-case scenario based on the laws of physics.

Ultimately, the Iron Dome was treated as a “feel good” system, bankrolled by the US, to keep Israelis calm during Gaza Wars, as the Gaza-fired missiles are largely useless and unguided, and just land in empty fields anyhow. The new system will likely be that for Hezbollah, only more expensive, which isn’t a big obstacle for the Israeli government since in great measure they aren’t actually paying for it.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.