THE ARROW ANTIMISSILE PROGRAM

In 2000, the Israeli Air Force received its first operational Arrow missile battery, making Israel the first country in the world with an operational system that could shoot down incoming enemy missiles.

The idea to create the Arrow was born in the mid1980s after President Ronald Reagan floated his Star Wars plan and offered America’s allies to partner in developing systems that could protect the country from Soviet nuclear missiles.

The Arrow (below) was a revolutionary idea. Due to Israel’s small size and lack of territory, all ballistic missiles deployed in the region — Syria, Iraq and Iran — can reach anywhere within the country and pose a strategic and possibly even existential threat. Israel, the developers argued, needed a system that could shoot down enemy missiles over neighboring countries and provide overall protection for the tiny Jewish State.

The program had its ups and downs but got a huge boost in funding after the First Gulf War in 1991 when Saddam Hussein fired 39 Scuds into Israel, paralyzing the country and forcing mil- lions of Israelis into bomb shelters with their gas masks.

The Arrow was just the beginning. Today, Israel has the Arrow, which is partially funded by the United States, to intercept long-range ballistic missiles, David’s Sling to intercept medium-range rockets and cruise missiles as well as the combat-proven Iron Dome, which has intercepted hundreds of Katyusha rockets fired from the Gaza Strip in recent years.

Israel is the only country in the world that has used missile defense systems in times of war. These systems do more than just save lives. They also give the country’s leadership “diplomatic maneuverability,” the opportunity to think and strategize before retaliating against rocket attacks.

While other countries have also invested in missile defense, none has created a multi-tier architecture like Israel.