The UN condemns ‘a large number of civilian casualties’ in northern Gaza as Israel steps up its campaign

Wyre Davies
Message from Jerusalem

Several reports in the Israeli media today suggest that the United States is considering transferring an advanced missile defense system known as THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) to Israel.

The system, specifically designed to intercept high-altitude ballistic missiles, would complement Israel’s already advanced, multi-layered missile defense capability. This has been used repeatedly with great success against rockets, projectiles and missiles fired from Gaza, Lebanon and Iran.

It is the prospect of the conflict with Iran escalating into a broader regional war that has fueled more talk of THAAD deployment.

Israel is expected to soon respond to Iran’s unprecedented launch of 180 missiles against Israel earlier this month. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has promised that an attack on Iran would be “lethal, precise and surprising.”

If President Biden were to agree to send the THAAD mobile system to Israel, from one of the US military bases in the region, it would reportedly require a large number of US military personnel to operate the system.

Although the US is already deeply involved in this conflict and supplies much of Israel’s heavy and advanced weapons, the prospect of US military “boots on the ground” would underscore how dependent Israel has become on US military support.