The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Wednesday that it has used laser weapons to destroy enemy airborne projectiles during the ongoing conflict, a revelation that boosts Israel’s strategic technological advantage.
The Jerusalem Post reported:
In a historic breakthrough, the IDF on Wednesday announced that an unnamed laser defense system similar to the much celebrated Iron Beam laser system has shot down dozens of aerial threats during the war.
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Head of the Defense Ministry’s Directorate of Research and Development Brig.-Gen. Yehuda Elmakayes stated, “During the war, we deployed several high-power laser system prototypes, resulting in significant achievements, culminating in the world’s first successful high-power laser interceptions on the battlefield.
“Throughout this period, we gained substantial experience in optimizing and operating laser technologies in the field. We are currently integrating these insights into the systems under development while expanding the range of laser-based systems to protect Israeli civilians and IDF forces.”
In March, Breitbart News reported that Israeli officials had said the Iron Beam system was nearing deployment — and now, it appears, the system was in fact used. It will supplement, not replace, the Iron Dome, which uses missiles to destroy other missiles. However, the cost of firing a laser is less than firing each missile — and the missiles are currently manufactured in the U.S., making Israel depend on U.S. aid.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of Trump 2.0: The Most Dramatic ‘First 100 Days’ in Presidential History, available for Amazon Kindle. He is also the author of The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency, now available on Audible. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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