JERUSALEM – Israel for the first time deployed its ship-mounted defence system, called the C-Dome, against a “suspicious” target that entered the country’s airspace near the southern city of Eilat, the military said on April 9.
The C-Dome is a naval version of the Iron Dome air defence system used to shield against rocket and missile attacks.
On the evening of April 8, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) reported an alert in the area of Eilat, which was targeted in February by intercepted ballistic missile fire from Yemen’s Houthi rebels, allies of Palestinian militants Hamas.
“Following the sirens that sounded in the area of Eilat regarding the infiltration of a hostile aircraft, IDF Naval forces identified a suspicious aerial target crossing into Israeli territory,” the IDF said in a statement released early on April 9.
“The target was successfully intercepted by the ‘C-Dome’ naval defence system,” it said.
No injuries or damage were reported.
An IDF spokesperson would not confirm whether the “suspicious” target had been a drone but told AFP this was “the first operational use of C-Dome”.
Mounted on Sa’ar 6-class corvettes, German-made warships, the C-Dome uses the same interceptor as the Iron Dome, according to state-owned operator Rafael Advanced Defence Systems.
The land-based Iron Dome has been used countless times to intercept rockets fired from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.
That defence system costs roughly US$50,000 (S$67,400) per launch.
Israel and Hamas have been engaged in a war since Oct 7, when Palestinian militants launched an attack on southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and dragging another 253 into captivity as hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive in the enclave has killed more than 33,000 Palestinians, according to health authorities in Hamas-run Gaza.
The Houthis, who control Yemen’s capital and most populous areas, have attacked international shipping in the Red Sea since November in solidarity with the Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas. AFP, REUTERS
