The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) presented the first statistics from yesterday's attack on Iran and stated that they had intercepted 99% of most of the 320 unmanned aerial vehicles and missiles launched by Iran, the Israeli news agency TPS reported, quoted by BTA.
"This is a very important strategic achievement," said IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari.
Commenting on the figures, Hagari said that not a single attack device of the approximately 170 drones and 30 cruise missiles entered Israeli airspace.
Most of the drones were shot down by US, British and Jordanian forces. Hagari said French planes also helped Israel defend itself, but that there was no immediate word on whether they intercepted drones or missiles. Israeli fighter jets shot down several cruise missiles.
However, "Out of over 120 ballistic missiles, only a few fell on Israeli territory. They went down at the air force base in Nevatim. The base is functioning and continues to perform its tasks". The military released footage of planes taking off and landing at the base near Beersheba.
Israel's multi-layered air defense includes the "Arrow-3" (Arrow-3), which is capable of intercepting missiles in space. It made its first interception when it shot down a Houthi ballistic missile in October. It may have been the first case of a missile being shot down outside the Earth's atmosphere, but Israel has not confirmed this.
Germany is in the process of buying the "Arrow-3", which is the first sale of the system to another country.
Sirens sounded in Jerusalem, northern Israel and the Negev, prompting Israelis to scramble to safe premises. Since ballistic missiles are intercepted at a higher altitude, their debris can fall over a wider area, the IDF said, explaining the widespread alarm.
Iran has threatened to retaliate for the April 1 airstrike on its embassy compound in Damascus. The commander of the Quds Force was killed in the strike. of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Brigadier General Mohammed Reza Sahedi and seven other IRGC officers.
Israel is believed to be responsible for the attack, although Jerusalem has never confirmed this.