America is showing the depth of its commitment to Israel’s defence by deploying one of its most powerful missile defence systems there. The Ukrainians want the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) system, too, but they have yet to get it. About 100 American troops will be sent to Israel to operate the THAAD battery, deepening US involvement in the Middle East war.
America has seven THAAD batteries and one of them is being dispatched to Israel following “Iran’s unprecedented attacks against Israel on April 13 and again on October 1,” according to the Pentagon.
But Iran does not seem in the least put out. A columnist in the Tehran Times notes that the THAAD system is designed to intercept short, medium, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles but is not equipped to counter the growing threat of hypersonic ballistic missiles, which Iran reportedly possesses.
Iran calls the Fattah-1, which it unveiled in June 2023, its first hypersonic missile.
Iran warning
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi warned that the United States was putting the lives of its troops “at risk by deploying them to operate U.S. missile systems in Israel”.
“While we have made tremendous efforts in recent days to contain an all-out war in our region, I say it clearly that we have no red lines in defending our people and interests,” Araqchi posted on X.
This isn’t the first time Washington has sent a THAAD battery to Israel. One was dispatched in 2019 for an exercise.
The US also deployed a THAAD battery to the Middle East to protect US forces in the region late last year after the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas militants.
It is also not unusual for the US to have a limited number of troops in Israel for training and exercises.
But this is different in that American troops will be in Israel explicitly to defend the country in the middle of a war.
THAAD will add another layer to Israel’s sophisticated air and missile defences. Israel recently retired its US-made Patriot systems after decades of use.
THAAD capability
THAAD is considered a complementary system to the Patriot, but it can defend a wider area. It can hit targets at ranges of 150 to 200 km.
Generally, each THAAD battery consists of six truck-mounted launchers, 48 interceptors, radio and radar equipment and requires 95 soldiers to operate.
Developed by the US Missile Defence Agency, THAAD is operated by the army. An eighth THAAD battery is expected to be in service sometime next year.
What makes THAAD so accurate is the radar system that supplies its targeting information, the Army Navy/Transportable Radar Surveillance radar, or AN/TPY-2.
Importantly, THAAD interceptors do not carry explosive warheads; instead, they collide with the target, which is destroyed by the force of collision.
Production models of the THAAD system are said to have never failed to intercept incoming targets in tests.
THAAD deployments have been watched closely by US rivals, especially China.
Beijing objected when a THAAD battery was deployed to South Korea in 2017 to counter ballistic missile threats from North Korea. Experts said Beijing was worried that the powerful radar could be used to spy on activities in China.
The US has also deployed THAAD to Guam to protect US military bases on the Pacific island from ballistic missile threats from North Korea or China.