“Israel’s air defenses are ready for Iran, claims to the contrary are false”
Senior defense officials reject assertions cited in U.S. deliberations, saying Arrow, Iron Dome, and David’s Sling remain fully operational.
Senior figures in Israel’s defense industry expressed anger in conversations with Calcalist over what they described as attempts by Israeli officials to justify the postponement of a U.S. attack on Iran by citing alleged shortcomings in the readiness of the IDF’s air defense systems. One senior figure called the claims “nonsense and irresponsibility.”
Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Rafael are the main manufacturers of the air defense systems operated by the Israeli Air Force. IAI produces the Arrow 3 interceptor missiles, designed to counter ballistic missiles such as those launched at Israel from Iran and Yemen, while Rafael manufactures the interceptors for the Iron Dome and David’s Sling systems.
“The claim that Israel’s air defense systems are not prepared to respond to missile barrages from Iran is false,” a senior member of the defense establishment told Calcalist. “From the outbreak of the war two years ago until now, no company has paused for even a moment. Everyone who needs to be producing is doing so, around the clock.”
Another senior security official told Calcalist on Sunday that “the current state of Israel’s air defense systems is very close to their condition on the eve of the 12-Day War last June. During that war, the air defense array operated successfully: out of more than 550 missiles launched at Israel from Iran, only about 40 reached Israeli territory. All the rest were intercepted.”
Over the weekend, CNN reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was among several regional leaders who spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump and urged him to refrain from attacking Iran. According to the report, Netanyahu expressed concern during the conversations about the state of Israel’s air defense systems following their intensive use during the nearly two-year-long war. The White House confirmed that Netanyahu and Trump had spoken in the days preceding Trump’s decision to postpone the planned attack, but declined to provide details about the content of the discussions.
Even before reports emerged in the U.S. media regarding Netanyahu’s alleged concerns, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir toured an Arrow 3 missile battery on Thursday evening together with the commander of the Air Defense Division, Brig. Gen. K. During the visit, Zamir stated: “It is important for every citizen to know that the IDF is prepared for defense and adjusts its readiness based on a responsible and measured assessment of the situation.”
“The Arrow missile production line, like other systems essential to Israel’s defense, has not stopped for a minute and has even been significantly reinforced,” said a senior defense official. He also firmly rejected claims raised last summer that the absence of external directors at IAI, amid political disputes between Defense Minister Israel Katz and the minister responsible for government companies, David Amsalem, had delayed the procurement of interceptor missiles.
Against this backdrop, IAI workers’ union chairman Yair Katz sent a message to company employees on Sunday evening stating that “IAI employees are working around the clock on the production of Arrow systems for Israel’s security. Production has not stopped for even a single day, on the contrary, since Operation Rising Lion it has only intensified. Nothing is stopping us, and nothing will stop us, in the production process.”
