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Is It Time for an IDF Missile Corps?
Hezbollah members parade during a rally marking al-Quds Day, (Jerusalem Day) in Beirut’s southern suburbs, Lebanon, April 5, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir
JNS.org – Iran’s April 14 attack on strategic Israeli sites including the Nevatim F-35 air base was successfully stopped by an extraordinarily capable multi-layered air-defense system and assistance from allied militaries, but still serves as a reminder that Israeli air bases are a prime target for both Iran and its Lebanese Shi’ite proxy, Hezbollah.
Hezbollah, which has more firepower than most NATO militaries, will certainly attempt to saturate Israeli air defenses and target airbases in any future full-scale conflict with Israel.
On Tuesday, Hezbollah claimed it had targeted an Iron Dome air defense battery in northern Israel with suicide drones.
The potential establishment of an “Israel Defense Forces Missile Corps,” perhaps under the Israeli Air Force or the IDF Artillery Corps, would represent a significant shift toward enhancing Israeli attack capabilities through advanced, land-based missile systems. These would both partially ease the very intensive workload of the IAF, and create redundancy options for Israeli firepower capabilities.
According to an April 10 report in Aviation Week, citing an American defense official, the IAF’s 39-jet fleet of F-35Is “have surged to more than five times normal operations since the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas and have sustained that level with the help of international support.” The report added that the Israel fleet of stealth fighters saw a “565% jump in monthly average flight hours over a six-month period.”
“By moving to three shifts for nonstop operations, Israeli maintainers and contractor field service representatives have allowed the Israeli Air Force to continue flying F-35Is at a rate of 35-39 jets a day,” the report said, giving an indication of the IAF’s workload even prior to the April 14 attack.
The first advantage of a ground-based Israeli missile corps would be reducing at least some of the workload currently facing the IAF.
In addition, ground-based missile units offer rapid response—operational within minutes—alongside minimal crew requirements for operation and maintenance.
Vitally, creating more such missile bases would also give Israel alternative strike options in the event that an enemy manages to impair the country’s air bases (despite the fact that the IAF is confident in its ability to rapidly repair runways and other air base infrastructure).
The introduction of a dedicated missile corps would complement the manned and unmanned array of fighter jets, combat helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles, with UAVs able to help direct the fire of the missiles.
Diversifying Israel’s strike mechanisms and dispersing strategic risks would be the main benefits of such a move.
The IDF is already equipped with a range of surface-to-surface guided rocket and missile systems. Israel’s adversaries have claimed, without corroboration, that such missiles have already been used. For example, in May 2022, Syrian state media claimed that Israeli surface-to-surface missiles were used in a strike on a target near Damascus, and that the missiles were fired from the Golan Heights.
It seems safe to assume that many of the systems offered by Israeli defense company Elbit Systems are already integrated into the IDF. The government-owned Tomer defense company stands as the backbone of these developments, acting as the country’s rocket propulsion knowledge center and having a hand in developing these sophisticated systems.
Elbit’s products include the autonomous artillery rocket system called Precise and Universal Launching System (PULS), with which, according to Elbit, “there is no need to move artillery units based on the required firing range; the versatile solution can fire a variety of ammunition types to various ranges from the same position, to ranges of up to 300 kilometers [186 miles].”
In addition, the Accular is described as a “highly accurate, combat-proven guided rocket designed to support ground forces. The artillery rocket addresses urban warfare requirements and the need for near-real-time responsiveness. Accular can neutralize targets to a range of up to 40 kilometers [25 miles] and is especially required in areas where the use of traditional artillery is limited by terrain, distance and accuracy.”
Other products include the Extra artillery rocket, which has a range of 150 kilometers [93 miles] and which travels at supersonic speeds, and the Predator Hawk long-range strike rocket, which has a 300 kilometer [186 mile] range.
Israel’s long-range ballistic missile capabilities remain classified.
According to international media reports, they include variants of the Jericho ballistic missile (types 1 through 3) and submarine-launched Popeye cruise missiles.
An independent IDF missile corps is both timely and necessary. Recent events suggest that while air defenses have never been more important for guarding Israel’s attack capabilities, relying primarily on aircraft for strikes may be placing too many eggs in too few baskets.
The post Is It Time for an IDF Missile Corps? first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel to Send Delegation to Qatar for Gaza Ceasefire Talks
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a news conference in Jerusalem, Sept. 2, 2024. Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS
Israel has decided to send a delegation to Qatar for talks on a possible Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, an Israeli official said, reviving hopes of a breakthrough in negotiations to end the almost 21-month war.
Palestinian group Hamas said on Friday it had responded to a US-backed Gaza ceasefire proposal in a “positive spirit,” a few days after US President Donald Trump said Israel had agreed “to the necessary conditions to finalize” a 60-day truce.
The Israeli negotiation delegation will fly to Qatar on Sunday, the Israeli official, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter, told Reuters.
But in a sign of the potential challenges still facing the two sides, a Palestinian official from a militant group allied with Hamas said concerns remained over humanitarian aid, passage through the Rafah crossing in southern Israel to Egypt and clarity over a timetable for Israeli troop withdrawals.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is due to meet Trump in Washington on Monday, has yet to comment on Trump’s announcement, and in their public statements Hamas and Israel remain far apart.
Netanyahu has repeatedly said Hamas must be disarmed, a position the terrorist group, which is thought to be holding 20 living hostages, has so far refused to discuss.
Israeli media said on Friday that Israel had received and was reviewing Hamas’ response to the ceasefire proposal.
The post Israel to Send Delegation to Qatar for Gaza Ceasefire Talks first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Tucker Carlson Says to Air Interview with President of Iran
Tucker Carlson speaks on July 18, 2024 during the final day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Photo: Jasper Colt-USA TODAY via Reuters Connect
US conservative talk show host Tucker Carlson said in an online post on Saturday that he had conducted an interview with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, which would air in the next day or two.
Carlson said the interview was conducted remotely through a translator, and would be published as soon as it was edited, which “should be in a day or two.”
Carlson said he had stuck to simple questions in the interview, such as, “What is your goal? Do you seek war with the United States? Do you seek war with Israel?”
“There are all kinds of questions that I didn’t ask the president of Iran, particularly questions to which I knew I could get an not get an honest answer, such as, ‘was your nuclear program totally disabled by the bombing campaign by the US government a week and a half ago?’” he said.
Carlson also said he had made a third request in the past several months to interview Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will be visiting Washington next week for talks with US President Donald Trump.
Trump said on Friday he would discuss Iran with Netanyahu at the White House on Monday.
Trump said he believed Tehran’s nuclear program had been set back permanently by recent US strikes that followed Israel’s attacks on the country last month, although Iran could restart it at a different location.
Trump also said Iran had not agreed to inspections of its nuclear program or to give up enriching uranium. He said he would not allow Tehran to resume its nuclear program, adding that Iran did want to meet with him.
Pezeshkian said last month Iran does not intend to develop nuclear weapons but will pursue its right to nuclear energy and research.
The post Tucker Carlson Says to Air Interview with President of Iran first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hostage Families Reject Partial Gaza Seal, Demand Release of All Hostages
Demonstrators hold signs and pictures of hostages, as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages kidnapped during the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas protest demanding the release of all hostages in Tel Aviv, Israel, Feb. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Itai Ron
i24 News – As Israeli leaders weigh the contours of a possible partial ceasefire deal with Hamas, the families of the 50 hostages still held in Gaza issued an impassioned public statement this weekend, condemning any agreement that would return only some of the abductees.
In a powerful message released Saturday, the Families Forum for the Return of Hostages denounced what they call the “beating system” and “cruel selection process,” which, they say, has left families trapped in unbearable uncertainty for 638 days—not knowing whether to hope for reunion or prepare for mourning.
The group warned that a phased or selective deal—rumored to be under discussion—would deepen their suffering and perpetuate injustice. Among the 50 hostages, 22 are believed to be alive, and 28 are presumed dead.
“Every family deserves answers and closure,” the Forum said. “Whether it is a return to embrace or a grave to mourn over—each is sacred.”
They accused the Israeli government of allowing political considerations to prevent a full agreement that could have brought all hostages—living and fallen—home long ago. “It is forbidden to conform to the dictates of Schindler-style lists,” the statement read, invoking a painful historical parallel.
“All of the abductees could have returned for rehabilitation or burial months ago, had the government chosen to act with courage.”
The call for a comprehensive deal comes just as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepares for high-stakes talks in Washington and as indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas are expected to resume in Doha within the next 24 hours, according to regional media reports.
Hamas, for its part, issued a statement Friday confirming its readiness to begin immediate negotiations on the implementation of a ceasefire and hostage release framework.
The Forum emphasized that every day in captivity poses a mortal risk to the living hostages, and for the deceased, a danger of being lost forever. “The horror of selection does not spare any of us,” the statement said. “Enough with the separation and categories that deepen the pain of the families.”
In a planned public address near Begin Gate in Tel Aviv, families are gathering Saturday evening to demand that the Israeli government accept a full-release deal—what they describe as the only “moral and Zionist” path forward.
“We will return. We will avenge,” the Forum concluded. “This is the time to complete the mission.”
As of now, the Israeli government has not formally responded to Hamas’s latest statement.
The post Hostage Families Reject Partial Gaza Seal, Demand Release of All Hostages first appeared on Algemeiner.com.