By David Dolan
DDolan.com 
Israel has been the frequent target of Palestinian rocket and mortar attacks in recent weeks, launched from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. Some of the attacks have featured Iranian-supplied Grad missiles capable of traveling much further than the less powerful Kassam rockets produced in the Gaza Strip. One missile hit the city of Rishon Letzion, located just eight miles south of Tel Aviv not far from Ben Gurion International Airport. Other missiles struck the large Negev Desert city of Beersheva, close to Israel’s Dimona nuclear reactor.
With suspicions rising that Islamic militiamen may be attempting to strike the reactor, which could release radiation into the atmosphere, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak ordered the deployment of the new Iron Dome anti-missile defense system in the vicinity of Beersheva. Israeli Air Force commander Ido Ne-hush-tan told reporters that the system, partially funded by the United States, is “ready for action,” adding that Israel is the first country in the world to deploy this type of system in its defense arsenal. The Iron Dome system features advanced laser and radar technology in order to intercept incoming enemy rockets.
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