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For the first time, Israel has blocked a rocket attack from Egypt.
The Israel Air Force stopped a rocket launched from Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula from striking the southern port of Eilat. On Aug. 13, the air force’s Iron Dome missile and rocket defense system intercepted an unidentified projectile over Eilat.
“Last night, the Iron Dome system intercepted for the first time a rocket that fired towards the city of Eilat,” the Israel Air Force said. “The battery was placed in the Eilat area last month following assessments of rocket fire towards the city by terrorist squads based in Sinai, because of an operation conducted by the Egyptian military in the peninsula. No damage was reported, and three people were treated for anxiety attacks.”
The air force said this marked the first interception attempt by its new aerial defense division. The statement said Israel feared that Sinai militias were targeting the flow of tourists to Eilat.
An Al Qaida-aligned group claimed responsibility for the rocket launch. The group, Ansar Beit Maqdis, said the attack was meant to retaliate against the Israeli killing of four militia operatives on Aug. 9.
Officials said they expected insurgency militias in Sinai to launch additional attacks on Eilat. They said the military was examining reports that more than one rocket was launched toward the city.
“The daily routine of combat soldiers and interceptors of the Iron Dome consists of shifts around the clock at the launching sites and the interception management centers,” the air force said. “Through this routine, the positions of the system are manned around the click and are ready to act against any threat that comes their way.”
On Aug. 8, the Israeli military closed Eilat International Airport amid a threat of a rocket attack from Sinai. The military redirected commercial flights to the nearby air force base of Uvda.
“Assuming there is a threat from Sinai, and whether or not a warning alarm is sounded, we operate under the assumption that terrorist activity in Sinai may extend over to Eilat and other communities on the Sinai border,” Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said.
