Top Israeli officials Sunday praised its homemade anti-rocket system Iron Dome after it intercepted volleys of rockets fired by Gaza militants.
In a sudden flare-up of violence that shattered months of relative calm, Palestinian militants have fired more than 120 rockets into southern Israel since Friday, the Israeli defence ministry said in a statement.
The Iron Dome system intercepted 28 of the 31 Grad rockets fired at major Israeli cities over the weekend, and another seven of 15 rockets fired Sunday, Xinhua reported.
“The system has proven itself very well,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during his cabinet’s weekly meeting Sunday.
He said the government “will do everything within its power” to procure more batteries in the coming years to improve the protection of the country.
Defence Minister Ehud Barak said Saturday that Iron Dome provided the country’s political and military leadership “greater freedom” to deal with threats, referring to the decision to order the assassination of a top militant in the Gaza Strip Friday, whom the military said had planned to launch an imminent attack on the Israel-Egypt border.
