US, Israel test new missile-defense system

The U.S. and Israel on Wednesday announced they had successfully put a new missile shield system through a barrage of tests.

Trials of the system, known as David’s Sling, began last week and ended on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Its success against a range of simulated threats means it could be deployed in 2016, according to officials reviewing the project.

The tests mark “a major milestone in the development of the David’s Sling weapon and provides confidence in future Israeli capabilities to defend against the developing threat,” said Rick Lehner, spokesman for the U.S. Missile Defense Agency.

{mosads}Lehner said his agency partnered with the Israel Missile Defence Organization on the tests, the system’s third round. He said it had successfully defended against “threat representative targets” meant to simulate attacks from Iran, Lebanon or Syria.

Raytheon, a top U.S. arms maker, developed the anti-missile platform in conjunction with Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. Rafael is state-owned and refers to the system using a Hebrew phrase meaning “Magic Wand.”

The platform is intended to down enemy aircraft, low-flying cruise missiles and rockets with ranges of 63 to 125 miles.

These traits place David’s Sling between two preexisting Israeli shield platforms, filling the operational gap between the short-range Iron Dome system and the Arrow ballistic missile interceptor, both already active.

U.S. lawmakers have long aided Israel’s military by helping fund its missile defense technologies. Congress voted last year, for example, to give Jerusalem $225 million for Iron Dome shields.

The tests though come amid tensions between President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following Netanyahu’s reelection to a fourth term earlier this month.

Lawmakers from both parties though insist that relations between the two countries are strong.

The Senate passed a pro-Israel budget amendment last Wednesday. Freshman Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) offered the legislation to reaffirm support for the U.S. ally.

Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Wednesday visited Jerusalem, standing with Netanyahu and declaring that U.S. ties with Israel “as strong as ever.”