• Hezbollah launched hundreds of rockets and drones at Israel, as Israel’s military said it struck Lebanon with around 100 jets to thwart a larger attack, in one of the biggest clashes in more than 10 months of border warfare.

• Hezbollah fired missiles at Israel immediately after the attacks on October 7 by Hamas gunmen on Israel. 

• In northern Israel, warning sirens sounded and explosions were heard in several areas as Israel’s Iron Dome aerial defence system shot down rockets coming from southern Lebanon.

• Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging fire constantly ever since, while avoiding a major escalation as war rages in Gaza to the south.

• United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was deeply concerned by the escalation between Israel and Hezbollah and called on both parties to immediately return to a cessation of hostilities.

• Egypt and Jordan also warned against escalation.

• Any major spillover in the fighting, which began in parallel with the war in Gaza, risks morphing into a regional conflagration drawing in Hezbollah’s backer Iran and Israel’s main ally the United States.

What are the components of Israel’s defence system?

• Iron Dome: Intercepts short-range surface-to-surface rockets (bottom layer).

• David’s Sling: Intercepts short to medium and medium to long range surface-to-surface missiles (middle layer).

• Arrow-2: Intercepts medium to long range missiles (upper layer).

• Arrow-3: Intercepts long-range missiles (upper layer).

Together, they defend Israel against various airborne threats.

What is Iron Dome system? 

• The Iron Dome is an innovative, mobile system that defends the state against short-range rockets. 

• It is capable of successfully handling multiple incoming threats simultaneously. 

• It is the world’s first missile defence system developed to tackle the threat of short range rockets and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs).

• Development of the Iron Dome was launched in 2007 and the system became operational in March, 2011.

• The United States was a  partner in the development of the Iron Dome system, and continues to develop the system with Israel. 

• The Israel Missile Defence Organisation (IMDO) leads the development of the Iron Dome, with Rafael Advanced Defence Systems as the main contractor.

• Iron Dome is considered as one of the most advanced defence systems in the world.

• It uses a radar in order to identify and destroy air-based threats before they can cause any damage.

• Iron Dome is a highly mobile, dual mission system that is constantly evolving and has grown over the years providing protection for motorised or mechanised troops, as well as point air defence for military, industrial and administrative installations.

• Each truck-towed unit fires radar-guided missiles to blow up short-range threats like rockets, mortars and drones in mid-air.

• The C-Dome is the naval version, protecting strategic naval and land assets against advanced ballistic, aerial and surface-to-surface threats, including saturated attacks.

How does it work?

The Iron Dome consists of three main systems that work together to create a protective shield: 

i) A detection and tracking radar 

ii) A battle management and weapon control system (BMC) 

iii) A missile firing unit. 

• The radar detects and tracks incoming threats, while the BMC coordinates between the radar and the interceptor missiles. The missile firing unit then engages the threats.

• The system is effective in all weather conditions, both day and night.

Similar air defence system in India:

Indrajaal

• Grene Robotics has designed and developed India’s first 100 per cent indigenous unified, distributed and wide-area autonomous drone defence dome called ‘Indrajaal’. 

• Indrajaal will protect a large area of 1,000-2,000 sq km per system against threats such as UAVs, incoming weapons, loitering munitions, Low-RCS targets autonomously.

S-400 Triumf Missile System

• The S-400 Triumf is a mobile surface-to-air missile system developed by Russia. 

• It is regarded as one of the most advanced long-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems in operation today, significantly surpassing the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense System (THAAD) in capability.

• The S-400 can engage various aerial targets, including aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and both ballistic and cruise missiles. 

• It has an effective range of up to 400 kilometers and can intercept targets at altitudes of up to 30 kilometers. 

• Additionally, the system can track 100 airborne targets and engage up to six of them simultaneously.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)