During Operation Cloud Pillar, Israel was able to intercept only 5% of rockets fired from Gaza
According to IDF statistics, during Operation Cloud Pillar, 84% of the rockets fired from Gaza were shot down. However, experts, having studied the data on the work of the “Iron Dome”, concluded that the effectiveness of this system is much lower.
Using standards and evaluations of missile defense systems for medium and long-range missiles, when a successful interception is considered to be the destruction of a warhead, experts said that the effectiveness of the Iron Dome was only 5%.
That was the conclusion of the American missile defense system specialist Theodor Postol, the Israeli Mordechai Schaefer from the Rafael Armament Development Authority company producing the Rafael Derby missiles, and also the employee of the Raytheon military corporation, the manufacturer of the Patriot missiles. (The latter wished to remain anonymous).
According to the Israeli edition of Haaretz, three scientists conducted research independently of each other, analyzing dozens of videos taken during the operation. They all agreed that most of the explosions, which looked like a successful interception, in fact turned out to be self-destruction of the “Iron Dome” missiles. Scientists note that the fireball appearing after the explosions during the day and the cloud of smoke at night always had a round symmetrical shape.
In the case of successful interception and destruction of warheads of other missiles, the flame has completely different contours.
In addition, experts noted a strange phenomenon. The Iron Dome rockets passed an identical trajectory, after which they blew up almost at the same time. On some shots, you can see how they make a sharp turn before the explosion. According to the expert, the air defense system cannot “remember” that the rocket must turn in the direction of the enemy a quarter of a second before self-destruction. The specialists had the impression that the trajectory of the “Iron Dome” guns was programmed in advance.
In many cases, Israeli air defense missiles are falling and, as it were, behind the Palestinian ones. In this scenario, the likelihood that the interceptor can approach a close distance and hit weapon the enemy is very small. In order for the operation to succeed, the rocket must take a trajectory that would lead to a direct hit, or at least to an acute angle.
Scientists also point to 3200 reports on damage to Israeli territories. According to the IDF, the entire 58 Palestinian missiles reached the Israeli lands, but such a small number could not have caused such large-scale destruction.
Experts compared the damage during Operation Cloud Post to what was caused during the Gulf War or the Second Lebanon War. They doubted that the number of missiles that had not been intercepted by Israel that had fallen in densely populated areas was exactly what they were presented with.
The Israeli police reported 109 incidents of Palestinian missiles falling, which is almost twice the number voiced by the IDF.
The conclusions of experts cast a shadow over the reports of the Israel Defense Forces on the success of the operation. They should not be ignored, especially if we take into account the realities of the Persian Gulf War: then the initial reports stated that the Patriot missiles shot down 96% of enemy warheads. Later it turned out that this figure was almost zero.
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