ISW: Iran sought weaknesses in Israeli air defense with combined strike

Iran, by launching a combined attack on Israel with tactics similar to Russia's attacks on Ukraine, may have hoped for a greater effect from the attack. Although the attack probably did not lead to the expected result, the Iranians will learn lessons and work to improve their ability to break through Israel's defenses over time. This was written by the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW), reports UNN.

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It is noted that the "package" of missile and drone strikes was modeled by Iran on those that the Russian invaders have repeatedly used against Ukraine.

The attack caused more limited damage than anticipated, probably because the Iranians underestimated Israel's enormous advantages in defending against such attacks compared to Ukraine

Iran's strike consisted of approximately 170 drones, 30 cruise missiles, and 120 ballistic missiles. The drones were launched long before the ballistic missiles were launched, very likely in the expectation that they would reach Israel's air defense window at about the same time as the cruise missiles and drones.

This is an approach the Russians have repeatedly used against Ukraine, ISW writes. The goal of such a package is to allow slower cruise missiles and drones to distract and disrupt air defenses to allow ballistic missiles, which are much harder to shoot down, to reach their targets.

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The Institute for the Study of War explains that Iran probably did not expect cruise missiles and drones to hit targets, but hoped that a much higher percentage of ballistic missiles would. At the same time, only a few ballistic missiles out of the total number of 120 fired penetrated Israeli air defense and hit near military bases.

However, the Institute for the Study of War believes that Iran will learn lessons from the failed April 13 attack that it can use to launch more successful attacks in the future. The attack probably helped Iran identify the strengths and weaknesses of the Israeli air defense system. It is noted that Iran can also share with Russia the lessons it learned during this attack.

Iran's ability to penetrate Israeli air defenses with even a small number of large ballistic missiles raises serious concerns about Israel's security. Russia's strikes on Ukraine have demonstrated that even a small number of precision strikes on key energy and other infrastructure can have significant consequences. Israel and its partners should not be complacent about this successful defense

WSJ: Israel will soon respond to Iranian strikeApr 14 2024, 11:40 PM • 36281 view