Israel faces potential shortage of interceptor missiles — report
Experts warn air defenses could be ‘stretched’ if Iran reacts to anticipated Israeli retaliatory strike against it, or if Hezbollah goes all out
Israel is encountering a potential shortage of rocket and missile interceptors in its air defense array amid the yearlong war in Gaza and Lebanon, and as it prepares for a possible escalating conflict with Iran, according to a British report Tuesday.
Citing experts and former military officials, the Financial Times said that Washington is assisting the Jewish state in addressing the matter, in particular through its promise to send a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missile system (THAAD), but Jerusalem could increasingly find itself needing to decide which targets it wants to prioritize defending.
“Israel’s munitions issue is serious,” Dana Stroul, an ex-US defense official, said. “If Iran responds to an Israel attack, and Hezbollah joins in too, Israel’s air defenses will be stretched.”
She added that supplies were not unlimited and that Washington could not keep up its ongoing supply of both Ukraine and Israel at the same pace.
Boaz Levy, CEO of Israel Aerospace Industries, which produces missile interceptors, added: “Some of our lines are working 24 hours, seven days a week. Our goal is to meet all our obligations.”
Israel’s multi-layered system includes the Iron Dome, used to shoot down short-range missiles; David’s Sling, used to intercept medium-range missiles; and the Arrow system, which is designed to intercept long-range ballistic missiles.
Since Hamas sparked the ongoing war with its October 7 onslaught last year, over 20,000 rockets and missiles have been fired at Israel from Gaza and Lebanon, according to military figures, with air defenses successfully downing the bulk of the projectiles that were headed to populated areas.
Israel has warded off two Iranian missile attacks — one in April and another, more intense one in October when the Islamic Republic fired 180 ballistic missiles at the country — with the help of the US and its regional allies. Israel has vowed to respond to the October attack in a time and manner of its choosing, which may spark an even more aggressive reaction by Tehran and its proxies.
According to former IDF general Assaf Orion, Israel hasn’t been fully tested as Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon has not unleashed its full capability yet.
“It has only been firing at around a tenth of its estimated prewar launching capacity, a few hundred rockets a day instead of as many as 2,000,” Orion told the Financial Times. “Some of that gap is a choice by Hezbollah not to go full out, and some of it is due to degradation by the IDF… But Hezbollah has enough left to mount a strong operation.”
Hezbollah, which began attacking Israel daily in the wake of the Hamas attack a year ago, has itself suffered a series of devastating security breaches in recent weeks, including the explosions of thousands of operatives’ communications devices in an attack widely blamed on Israel, and Israeli airstrikes that have decimated the group’s leadership.
Earlier this month, Israel launched a ground offensive in southern Lebanon to push the terror group away from the border, destroy its weapons stores and infrastructure, and remove the threat of an invasion similar to the one Hamas launched last year from Gaza.
