The Iron Dome Mentality

Instead of fighting terror through offensives, State of Israel increasingly fortifying itself
by: Hagai Segal

History has a thin sense of humor. Last Thursday, where the Iron Dome system passed its first test, was also the day where a Kornet anti-tank rocket hit a civilian bus around here for the first time. Seemingly, it was a random coincidence of two combat-related events, yet it provided us with some food for thought: By the time we solved one fortification problem, assuming we indeed resolved it, a new fortification problem emerged.

Will we now start to fortify every school bus near Gaza? The Kornet’s range is some five kilometers, so this is not a problem that can be resolved by slightly modifying bus routes near the border. If another missile or two hit a school bus, heaven forbid, parents in the western Negev may raise a hue and cry similar in scope to the one that demanded the Iron Dome until authorities caved in.

The authorities always cave in. Only a month ago, the State objected to the deployment of an Iron Dome battery near Beersheba, and now officials are already preparing to position a battery in every municipal region south of Palmahim. It’s hard to see the State rejecting a firm parental demand for the fortification of school buses against missiles.

In this case there is even no need to develop a new system; we have one ready: Windbreaker. RAFAEL engineers developed it in order to protect tanks, and there is no problem to modify it for civilian protection purposes. It will cost us a fortune, about NIS 1 million per Windbreaker (roughly $300,000), yet the Iron Dome case proves that money is no object under such circumstances.

A solution for every citizen

If the residents yell loud enough and our political leadership in any case prefers to fortify instead of taking over Gaza, the Treasury eventually signs the check. Hence, soon we shall be reaching the day where the State equips every southern bus with the Windbreaker system, just as in the past it fortified Judea and Samaria buses against stones and later against gunfire.

The terrorists will then convene an emergency session with all their engineers and come up with a more advanced system to kill Jews. Next, RAFAEL’s engineers will again be urged to develop a winning Israeli response to the advanced Palestinian tactic, and so on and so forth.

The State, which once upon a time promised a solution for every settler, will one day have to fortify every citizen. Perhaps they will implant some kind of genius chip into our ears that will warn us of approaching stabbing attacks and explosive devices. It will cost us a fortune, but we are willing to do anything here to fight Hamas.

In the past, we argued that the best defense is offence. Today, we put our trust in Iron Domes. Indeed, while the enemy charges, the people of Israel go into the trenches.

Iron Dome in action

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Get Tough With Russia

Russians seek Israeli know-how while selling weapons to our worst enemies.

by Aryeh Egozi

For years, Russian intelligence agents were openly present at any arms show where Israel participated, in order to monitor the latest developments by Israel’s defense industries. The Russians knew that Israel is the world’s most advanced nation in some areas, such as armor for tanks and various electronic systems.

While the Soviet Union still existed, Russian agents would show up at the Israeli exhibits and photograph every system from every possible angle. Israeli security officials knew who the enthused photographers were and would offer them coffee and cake.

Whatever is exhibited at an international convention can be photographed, and the Russians indeed took shots, picked up the brochures handed out at the site, and left with a great smile on their face (and not only because of the coffee and cake.)

Our officials also know that Israeli military systems captured by the Syrians or Lebanese during various clashes were quickly handed over to Moscow.

During the Russia-Georgia war, Russian jets intercepted several Israeli-made drones used by the Georgian forces. A few months later, the Russians first approached the Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) and sought to purchase several drones. In unofficial talks, they admitted that they have failed to develop their own high-quality unmanned aircraft.

A first deal was signed, with the IAI supplying several models of small drones to Russia. Yet in recent weeks, following Defense Minister Ehud Barak’s visit to Moscow, discussions on selling additional drones to the tune of $300 million were accelerated. The Russians conditioned the deal on the establishment of a joint drone factory in Russia. Both countries would invest, and the products would go to the Russian army.

Reassess drone sale
After Russia approved the sale of its Yakhont missiles to Syria, some questions emerged in Israel that should have emerged much earlier. Indeed, the enthusiasm shown by Israel’s defense industries in selling products to foreign nations already led to problematic situations in the past. This was the case with South Africa, with China, and also with Iran during the Shah’s rule.

While these states poured great amounts of money into Israel’s defense industries, someone should have thought about the changes that may take place in these countries.

The security agreement between Israel and Russian mostly pertains to the area of weapons systems. The Russians realized they can get much technical know-how from Israel that would assist their immense effort to rehabilitate their military. However, the Russians are working on various fronts: While they are trying to purchase military systems and know-how from Israel, they continue to supply arms to Israel’s worst enemies.

The Russians are selling arms to Syria, building nuclear reactors in Iran, and are looking into Tehran’s requests for advanced weapons systems. The Russians are motivated by two objectives: Filling the state coffers with dollars, and boosting their global influence.

Officials in Jerusalem must reassess the drone sale. Now of all times there is no room for a defense “honeymoon” in the ties between Israel and Russia. The expected damage is greater than the gains, and our officials must understand this. Moscow is only operating in line with its own interests; Israel should do the same.



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