Allied assistance
Yoav Gallant, the Israeli defense minister, also pointed to these two factors for foiling the Iranian barrage, citing “impressive operations” by the IDF and Israel’s allies. That included British jets shooting down drones near the Syria-Iraq border, which reportedly had been launched by Iran’s proxy militias.
The IDF said that thanks to “the Arrow system and, together with the strategic partner countries, most of the launches were intercepted” before they crossed into Israel. U.S. and French airborne early-warning and control surveillance systems helped give warplanes plenty of time to scramble for interceptions, an Israeli military official told POLITICO.
“In the past few days, we have been closely coordinating with Washington, London and Paris in readiness for the expected barrage — and that’s paid off,” said the official, granted anonymity to be able to speak freely.
British pilots shot down “a number” of Iran’s drones, U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed on Sunday. Sunak said he chaired an emergency meeting of Cabinet ministers on Friday to “agree a plan of action” for the expected Iranian attack on Israel. Additional pilots had been sent to the region, he said.
“Thanks to an international coordinated effort, which the U.K. participated in, almost all of these missiles were intercepted, saving lives not just in Israel but in neighbouring countries like Jordan as well,” Sunak said in a video posted on X on Sunday.
On Friday, just the day before Iran’s blitz, Gallant and senior military officers huddled with the head of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) at an airbase in Israel to review plans to defend Israel. “We discussed the close cooperation between the United States and Israel, between our defense establishments and our militaries,” Gallant said after the meeting.