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Israel has made the C-Dome defence system operational for the first time. It is a ship-mounted, naval version of the Iron Dome. (Image: @GeniusBotX/X)
The C-Dome defence system is ship-based and is used by mounting on Sa’ar 6-class corvettes, German-made warships.
Israel for the first time deployed its ship-mounted defence system, called the C-Dome, against a “suspicious” target that entered the country’s airspace near the southern city of Eilat, the military said Tuesday.
The Israeli Navy Sa’ar 6-class corvette in the Eilat Bay fired two interceptor missiles, at a suspected hostile drone possibly originating from Iraq and heading towards Eilat, Israel. This is the first ever operational interception made by Israel’s ship-mounted C-Dome. pic.twitter.com/sPZMlqeWbx— Eretz Israel (@EretzIsrael) April 9, 2024
The C-Dome is a naval version of the Iron Dome air defence system used to shield against rocket and missile attacks.
On Monday evening, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported an alert in the area of Eilat, which was targeted in February by intercepted ballistic missile fire from Yemen’s Houthi rebels, allies of Palestinian militants Hamas.
“Following the sirens that sounded in the area of Eilat regarding the infiltration of a hostile aircraft, IDF Naval forces identified a suspicious aerial target crossing into Israeli territory,” the IDF said in a statement released early Tuesday.
“The target was successfully intercepted by the ‘C-Dome’ naval defence system,” it said.
No injuries or damage were reported.
An IDF spokesperson would not confirm whether the “suspicious” target had been a drone but told AFP this was “the first operational use of C-Dome”.
Mounted on Sa’ar 6-class corvettes, German-made warships, the C-Dome uses the same interceptor as the Iron Dome, according to state-owned operator Rafael Advanced Defence Systems.
The land-based Iron Dome has been used countless times to intercept rockets fired from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.
That defence system costs roughly $50,000 per launch.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – AFP)
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