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Israel to Launch One of the Most Advanced Missile Defense Systems in the World, with U.S. Help
(Washington Post) Ruth Eglash and William Booth - When it is complete, Israel's multibillion-dollar missile defense system will rival, and in some ways surpass, in speed and targeting, air defenses deployed by Europe and the U.S. The U.S. has provided $3.3 billion over the past 10 years to support the defensive system, which will be able to knock down not only ballistic missiles but also orbiting satellites. The Israeli defense establishment and its American partners have designed a layered system that can respond to simultaneous attacks from multiple fronts - rockets lobbed by Hamas from Gaza, mid-range rockets fired by Hizbullah from Lebanon, and long-range ballistic missiles being developed by Iran. In addition, Israel's new X-Band radar will allow it to detect incoming missiles 500 or 600 miles out. "I define the system as pioneering," said Uzi Rubin, former director of Israel's missile defense program. "Even the United States doesn't have anything as complex, as sophisticated."