Posted on 03/23/2012 7:36:46 PM PDT by U-238
Key leaders of the U.S. Congress want U.S. President Barack Obama to provide funds to help Israel, should it request it, to produce more batteries of the Iron Dome counter-rocket system.
Israel's air force has three batteries deployed to protect cities in the southern Negev Desert against rockets fired by Palestinian militants in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip but budget problems mean it can't fund more batteries needed to shield the rest of the country.
Iron Dome, which racked up a 90 percent kill rate against Palestinian Qassam and Grad rockets in recent weeks, was developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and built with the help of a one-time $205 million U.S. grant in fiscal 2011.
The Iron Dome Support Act was introduced Wednesday by U.S. Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif., ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and co-sponsored by Foreign Affairs Committee Chairwoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla.
The legislation would permit Obama to authorize further funds for the "procurement, maintenance and sustainment" of the Iron Dome system as requested by the Israeli government of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.
Reps. Gary Ackerman, D-N.Y., the ranking member of the Middle East and South Asia subcommittee; Steve Chabot, R-Ohio, chairman of that subcommittee; David Cicilline, D-R.I.; Ann Marie Buerkle, R-N.Y., signed on as co-sponsors.
Berman observed in a statement that during the latest Palestinian barrage earlier this month Iron Dome "saved innocent lives and prevented an escalation of hostilities and a full-blown crisis.
"Israel must have the ability to defend itself from rocket and missile attacks and the United States will continue to stand by our strong ally if called upon in times of need," he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at upi.com ...
I’m all for it so long as it delivers no less than 500 pounds of high explosives to the launch point for each missile fired. Instead of two, it should launch three rockets - one to head to the origin, the other two to take out the incoming projectile.
The Israeli Iron Dome and the South Korean Firefinder or any counter battery radar. A killer mixture.
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
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I’d rather the IDF kick some pali-islamist ass BIGTIME, and go in and find those rockets and launchers. Could you imagine this happening to us?
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