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Context

• Israel is at war following an unprecedented attack by the Hamas group.
• The Iron Dome system, one of the best air defence systems in the world, was again in action.

What is the Iron Dome system?

• The Iron Dome system is a ground-to-air short-range air defence system deployed in several parts of the country to counter rocket attacks, mortars, artillery shells, and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) at short range.
• The air defence system has a range of approximately 70 km and has three central components that form a unit, namely;

1. 1. Detection and Tracking radar,
   2. Battle Management and Weapons Control and
   3. the Missile Launcher armed with 20 Tamir Missiles.

• The system has guarded Israel since 2011. During the 2006 Lebanon conflict, thousands of rockets were fired by Hezbollah and several northern areas including Haifa were attacked, killing many.
• The 2006 attacks prompted Israel to develop its own air defence system.

How Iron Dome Works?

• When a rocket is fired toward Israel, the Detection and Tracking radar detects the incoming trajectory and relays the information to the weapons control system, which performs fast, complex calculations to detect the trajectory, speed and expected target of the rocket.
• If the incoming rocket is directed towards a populated area or a strategic establishment, the launcher automatically fires the Tamir Missile and the rocket is destroyed mid-air to neutralize the threat.
• A single battery consists of three-four launchers and Israel has at least 10.
• The manufacturer of the Iron Dome system - Rafael Advanced Defence System claims it has a success rate of 90 per cent and has over 2,000 interceptions till now.

ISRAEL PALESTINE CONFLICT: https://www.iasgyan.in/daily-current-affairs/israel-palestine-conflict-15-9

MAP OF ISRAEL: https://www.iasgyan.in/daily-current-affairs/israels-controversial-judicial-reform-bill

Gaza Strip

• The Gaza Strip is a Palestinian exclave on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea.
• It borders Egypt on the southwest for 11 km and Israel on the east and north along a 51 km border.
• Together, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank make up the State of Palestine, which has been under Israeli military occupation since 1967.
• The territories of Gaza and the West Bank are separated from each other by Israeli territory.
• Both are under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority but the Strip is governed by Hamas, a militant, fundamentalist Islamic organization that came to power in the last-held elections in 2006. Since then, Gaza has been under a full Israeli-led land, sea, and air blockade.
• This prevents people and goods from freely entering or leaving the territory, leading to the territory being often called an "open-air prison".
• The major river in Gaza Strip is Wadi Gaza, around which the Wadi Gaza Nature Reserve was established, to protect the only coastal wetland in the Strip.
• The Gaza Strip has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen BSh), with warm winters during which practically all the annual rainfall occurs, and dry, hot summers.

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