Tel Aviv: Perfect coordination between the Israeli Air Force and Navy resulted on Saturday, July 2 with the successful interception of three UAV’s launched by the Hezbollah in Lebanon towards the Israel Karish gas pumping rig in the Mediterranean.
The UAV’s probably unarmed were detected in an early stage of their flight. One was shot down by an Israeli Air Force F-16. The two others by Barak air defence missiles launched from an Israeli ship. Sources said that the UAV’s were Iranian made, which formed a part of the weapon systems supplies by Iran to its Lebanese proxy, the Hezbollah. Iran is investing huge sums in developing different types of armed UAV’s and drones. These are already being used against Gulf States and against Israel.
In early 2022 , the Israeli Air Force (IAF) revealed that in 2021 , two Iranian UAV’s were shot down by two of its F-35, while on their way to Israel. The interception was achieved by the use of different aerial and ground sensors.
An Israeli defence source said that in recent months, Iran’s Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) has been increasing the delivery of drones to its proxies in the region and beyond. He noted that now Iranian-backed forces in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, as well as Hezbollah in Lebanon, have received these drones, adding that they were also sold to Venezuela.
Last year Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has begun integrating offensive and defensive systems, to enhance the ‘Sa’ar 6 corvette’s capabilities and usher the Israeli Navy into a new technological era, under the guidance of Israel’s Ministry of Defense (IMoD) and the IDF.
IAI’s Barak MX along with IAI’s complete naval combat suite will provide advanced defence systems to the Israel Navy’s Sa’ar 6 corvettes. The systems will be used to protect Israel’s exclusive economic zone and strategic facilities that face diversified threats in the marine arena. The Barak MX system was chosen after it was demonstrated to meet the operational requirements and future challenges faced. The BARAK family includes various range interceptors- 35 km, 70 km, and 150 km, and combines the capability to intercept various air defence threats from naval and land platforms.
Watch: A video from the moment of the interception of the UAV by IAF fighter jets: https://bit.ly/3umqIYN
-The writer is an Israel-based freelance journalist. The views expressed are of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda
