Officials said Iron Dome intercepted the BM-21 Grad rocket on March 25.
They said this marked the first live-fire test of Iron Dome, scheduled for
initial deployment by 2010.
In January 2009, Hamas fired scores of Grad rockets into Israel. Most of
the rockets were 122 mm, along with Chinese variants with a range of 40
kilometers.
Officials said the live fire test confirmed previous simulations of Iron
Dome. They said additional tests would be conducted over the next few months
as part of a fast-track development of short-range missile and rocket
defense.
The Defense Ministry did not specify an interception by Iron Dome.
Instead, in a cryptic statement, the ministry said Iron Dome responded
"accordingly" to the fire of several rockets "of the same type that were
fired in recent years at Israel."
Iron Dome, severely criticized by the state comptroller, has been
developed by the state-owned Rafael Advanced Defense Systems. Officials said
the system has reached the final stage of development and was running ahead
of schedule. They said the first Iron Dome battalion would be established
within the Israel Air Force by August 2009.
"This is a national mission aimed at reaching the stage in which a clear
majority of missiles do not reach their targets," Defense Minister Ehud
Barak said.
