Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett indicated on Tuesday that the country is hastening the rollout of laser technology that will assist in shielding it against attacks, according to the Associated Press.
The outlet reported that the prime minister said within a year, the nation’s military will start testing what is meant become a “laser wall” to defend Israel from drones, rockets, and missiles. Defense officials were initially planning for the laser capability to be ready in around two years, according to the AP.
This laser capability is supposed to complement the country’s other defensive capabilities such as the Iron Dome, according to the outlet. The AP reported that the Israeli military has indicated that the Iron Dome has been very effective, but that the prime minister noted during his remarks that the defensive system is limited by its significant cost.
“The economic equation will be reversed; they will invest a lot and we will invest a little,” Bennett said to the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, according to the Associated Press.
“If it is possible to intercept a missile or rocket with just an electric pulse that costs a few dollars, we will have nullified the ring of fire that Iran has set up on our borders,” he said, noting, “This new generation of air defense can also serve our friends in the region.”
Bennett said that people in Gaza can launch a rocket for several hundred dollars, while it requires tens of thousands of dollars in order to intercept such a projectile. According to the AP, Hamas launched over 4,000 rockets at the nation of Israel last May.
“That is an illogical equation,” Bennett noted. “We decided to break this equation.”
The Jewish State of Israel is a key U.S. ally in the Middle East that is under constant threat from enemies who wish to see it destroyed.