The surface-to-surface missile fired from Yemen into central Israel on Sunday morning had the longest range Israel has seen to date, former IDF Air Defense commander Brig.-Gen. Zvika Haimovich (res.) told 103FM later that day.
“What I understand, from the details I know right now, is that the incident under investigation is about a long-range missile from Yemen, probably the longest of what we have experienced so far from Yemen, and it is not the first,” Haimovich said. “We have seen them in the Eilat area, too.
“The missile, in its relatively early flight, was constantly under detection and being monitored,” he continued. “For a range of over 1,600-1,700 km., it takes 13-15 minutes, which is a very long time. The warning time for a resident [of central Israel] is a minute and a half, no matter where it comes from. Attempts were made to intercept the missile.”
He explained that the multiple explosions heard in Tel Aviv and surrounding cities were from the interceptors being launched, not from multiple missiles being fired at Israel.
“Was the missile hit by our interceptor, or did it disintegrate in the air?” he asked rhetorically. “It is too early to know. What is certain is that this threatening missile did not reach its target and fell into open areas in the end. Is that because it was hit by our interceptions, or did it fall apart in midair? That is what they must continue to investigate.”
He made a point to note that Israel’s North has been under heavy rocket fire for months, but the country is only up in arms when it is central Israel that is being attacked.
'We are at war in the North'
“We are in a war in the North, even if we don’t call it that,” he said. “Dozens of missiles and rockets are launched every day. You can’t call it by any other name. It’s not only a war once it reaches Tel Aviv.
“There is no doubt that Hezbollah’s missile arsenal is much more significant than what we experienced against Gaza,” he continued. “The matter of the scope of the attacks is also a very big challenge. Hezbollah, in the end, will be faced in Israel by an Air Force. The IDF is at a level of competence and readiness when fully prepared.”
He expressed concern about how ready Israelis must be for a war on the northern front. “We have a good starting point, and we definitely have who to trust, but a war against Lebanon is not like a war against Gaza or anything else we’ve experienced,” he explained. “Many preparation processes here are better done before and not during or after.”