Israeli defensive capabilities prevented ‘far greater destruction,' expert says

Fox News

4 days ago

A security expert has hailed the "outstanding performance" of Israel's defensive capabilities that he said prevented "far greater destruction," amid the barrage of Iranian missiles fired at the Jewish state.
The Institute for National Security Studies' Dr. Yehoshua Kalisky recently wrote that the "destructive potential of Iranian ballistic missiles is immense," given the size, maneuverability, and high velocity of various missiles in the Iranian arsenal. He calculated that Israel intercepted "approximately 95%" of the ballistic missiles launched toward its territory as of Saturday.
Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital he believes as of Monday, about 20 of the Iranian 250-300 ballistic missiles sent into Israeli airspace have made it through Israel's defenses. On Tuesday, the Israeli military said another 20 were fired, with five getting through with no fatalities.
As of June 15, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) also stated that Iran had "sent more than 100 UAVs at Israel," which it intercepted.
According to Taleblu, the "barrages against Israel follow the pattern established in 2024 where the decades-long covert war between Israel and Iran crept out of the shadows."
Taleblu says Iran has been "doubl[ing] down on targeting civilian population centers in what are called counter-value operations in a bid to erode Israel's will to continue its campaign against the Islamic Republic's military sites." He explained there have been "at least eight waves" of attacks on Israel, and that "there is a lot of anecdotal evidence to say that these waves are getting progressively smaller."
Amid the Iranian attacks, Kalisky outlined the myriad defensive capabilities that have protected Israeli citizens. These include the Magen Or, "a new and significant addition to Israel's defensive layer" that uses laser systems to intercept Iranian UAVs.
The U.S. deployed its Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense battery (THAAD) to Israel in October 2024 along with 100 U.S. personnel to operate the system. Kalisky says that THAAD "identifies targets up to 2,500 – 3,000 km away" and can intercept "short- and medium-range ballistic missiles at altitudes of up to 150 km."
Familiar Israeli systems continue to offer protection. Kalisky wrote that Iron Dome is intercepting missiles and short-range rockets while the David's Sling intercepts cruise missiles and medium-range rockets and missiles. Arrow 2 intercepts long-range ballistic missiles within the atmosphere, while Arrow 3 intercepts them outside the atmosphere.
Additionally, Israel's naval interception system, the C-dome, is deployed to Israeli Sa'ar 6-class missile ships, "protect[ing] strategic maritime assets."
Taleblu says that in addition to defending itself, Israel has targeted Iranian ballistic missile storage sites and launching infrastructure. As of Monday, the IDF announced they had destroyed a third of Iranian missile launchers.
According to Taleblu, the "longer the conflict continues, the more militarily neutered the Islamic Republic will become," though he notes "that doesn't mean the regime isn't lethal."
"Quantity has a quality of its own," Taleblu explained, saying that "Iranian ballistic missile survivability and maneuverability" has allowed projectiles to hit civilian population centers, causing death and "massive disruptions to patterns of life." Taleblu said, "indicating why a regime like this should not be in possession of the biggest ballistic missile arsenal in the region and shall not be permitted to fill up [with] nuclear weapons."
As of Tuesday, 24 Israelis have been killed and more than 500 injured by the onslaught of Iranian ballistic missiles.