Iron Beam laser interceptor to enter IDF service December 30
Defense officials frame laser deployment as part of Israel’s evolution into a “Defense-Tech Nation.”
Israel’s Ministry of Defense announced on Monday that it will deliver the country’s most advanced high-energy laser air-defense system, the “Or Eitan,” known internationally as Iron Beam, to the Israel Defense Forces on December 30.
The date, revealed by Brig. Gen. (res.) Dr. Danny Gold, head of the Defense Ministry’s Directorate of Defense Research & Development (DDR&D), comes after years of development and months of wartime acceleration. “Development of the ‘Or Eitan’ laser system has been completed,” Gold said. “We are preparing to deliver the first capability to the IDF on December 30, 2025, and at the same time are already working on the next generations.”
The Iron Beam system, designed to intercept rockets, drones, and other aerial threats with a high-power laser, has long been viewed as a strategic breakthrough, promising near-zero-cost interceptions and instantaneous engagement times. Gold’s announcement, delivered at the DefenseTech summit held at Tel Aviv University, positions the system not as an experimental platform but as an operational asset scheduled for deployment within weeks.
The announcement came as senior Israeli defense officials used the summit to describe a rapidly evolving national security environment shaped by the ongoing war and the lessons drawn from it. Maj. Gen. (res.) Amir Baram, Director General of the Ministry of Defense, framed the December delivery of Iron Beam as part of a wider technological transformation.
“For years, Israel was known worldwide as a ‘Cyber Nation,’” Baram said in his opening remarks to the conference. “Today, we have evolved into a true ‘Defense-Tech Nation.’” He pointed to a broad portfolio of capabilities now under development, ranging from unmanned systems and electronic warfare to quantum-resistant communications and space technologies, and argued that Israel’s strategic posture depends on staying ahead of adversaries who are “learning and preparing day by day.”
Baram said that more than 300 startups are currently working with DDR&D, including over 130 that joined operational efforts during the war. In 2024 alone, the Ministry signed 21 government-to-government defense agreements worth billions of shekels and invested 1.2 billion shekels in startups. “All fronts are still open,” he warned. “This transitional period brings uncertainty and risks, but also significant strategic opportunities for those who understand the moment.”
The DefenseTech Summit drew senior military, academic, and industry figures from Israel and abroad. But the focal point of the gathering was the confirmation that Iron Beam is no longer a distant project, it is a system the IDF expects to field imminently.
Gold suggested that the December 30 delivery is only the beginning. The laser program is already moving into follow-on generations, informed by what he described as unprecedented achievements during recent military operations. These advances, he said, offered “a glimpse into the ‘surprises’ pool, powerful, groundbreaking Israeli technologies that are the result of development by the people of the Defense Intelligence Agency for generations.”
