David’s Sling system failed to down Iranian ballistic missiles that struck southern towns — IDF

The Israeli air defense system that failed to shoot down two Iranian ballistic missiles that struck the southern cities of Dimona and Arad on Saturday night was the medium-range David’s Sling, the military confirms.

According to the Israeli Air Force’s probes of the incidents, there was no connection between the errors that led to the missile impacts, which injured nearly 200 people and caused extensive damage. The fact that the incidents occurred in the same area within two hours was entirely coincidental, the IAF said.

The missiles that hit Dimona and Arad carried conventional warheads — not cluster warheads — with hundreds of kilograms of explosives. The military said the Iranian missiles were likely from the Ghadr family of projectiles and are a known threat.

The David Sling system had engaged both projectiles, but its interceptors failed to knock them down, the military said.

Two earlier missile attacks on the same area in southern Israel were successfully intercepted using the same air defense system, according to the IAF.

More than 400 ballistic missiles have been launched from Iran at Israel since the start of the war, with the military reporting an interception rate of 92 percent of attacks heading for populated areas and key infrastructure.

While not initially designed to intercept long-range ballistic missiles, David’s Sling was first used against Iranian ballistic missiles during the June 2025 war, successfully shooting down several projectiles launched from 1,500 kilometers (932 miles) away.

David’s Sling has been used in the current war as well, downing numerous Iranian missiles. This comes after the Defense Ministry said in early February that it had completed a series of “complex” tests with the David’s Sling aimed at “upgrading readiness for future threats.”

Israel operates a multi-tiered missile defense array, with the Arrow 3 currently the country’s most advanced long-range missile defense system, meant to intercept ballistic missiles — like the kind fired from Iran — while they are still outside of Earth’s atmosphere.

The use of the medium-range system instead of the Arrow 3 to shoot down Iranian ballistic missiles is believed to be part of the military’s efforts to conserve Israel’s stockpile of expensive long-range interceptors.

While each David’s Sling missile costs roughly $1 million to use, the Arrow 3 system can cost Israel over $2.5 million per use.