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Report: Israel Faces Possible Shortage of Interceptor Missiles

An Arrow II missile interceptor is displayed in front of journalists at an Israeli air defense command in the Palmahim military base south of Tel Aviv May 12, 2011. (Reuters)
An Arrow II missile interceptor is displayed in front of journalists at an Israeli air defense command in the Palmahim military base south of Tel Aviv May 12, 2011. (Reuters)
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Report: Israel Faces Possible Shortage of Interceptor Missiles

An Arrow II missile interceptor is displayed in front of journalists at an Israeli air defense command in the Palmahim military base south of Tel Aviv May 12, 2011. (Reuters)
An Arrow II missile interceptor is displayed in front of journalists at an Israeli air defense command in the Palmahim military base south of Tel Aviv May 12, 2011. (Reuters)

Israel is encountering a potential shortage of rocket and missile interceptors in its air defenses, reports revealed on Tuesday a day after the country’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant admitted Israel needs US support in air armament.

The Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said that during the security review presented to Israeli ministers Monday, Gallant was asked about armaments.

He replied that there was a large gap when he entered the Defense Ministry, which he instructed to be filled before the start of the war.

Gallant said, “We are still dependent in air armaments and American planes,” but he clarified that “we are working with all our might to promote blue-white production and the development of independence” on the issue of armaments.

Gallant’s comments were confirmed by the London-based Financial Times, which on Tuesday said that Israel faces a severe shortage of interceptor missiles, detailing how the US is rushing to help close the gaps.

According to the report, the Pentagon on Sunday announced the deployment of the THAAD system that will arrive in Israel, in preparation for the expected attack in Iran, which could lead to further regional escalation.

“Israel’s munitions issue is serious,” Dana Stroll, a former senior official at the US Department of Defense, responsible for the Middle East, explained to the newspaper.

“If Iran responds to an Israel attack [with a massive air strike campaign], and Hezbollah joins in too, Israel air defenses will be stretched,” she said, adding that US stockpiles are not limitless. “The US can’t continue supplying Ukraine and Israel at the same pace. We are reaching a tipping point,” she added.

Replenishing stocks

Boaz Levy, chief executive of Israel Aerospace Industries, a state-owned company which makes the Arrow interceptors used to shoot down ballistic missiles, told the newspaper he is running triple shifts to keep production lines running.

“Some of our lines are working 24 hours, seven days a week. Our goal is to meet all our obligations,” Levy said, adding that the time required to produce interceptor missiles is “not a matter of days”.

While Israel does not disclose the size of its stockpiles, he added: “It is no secret that we need to replenish stocks.”

The British newspaper explained that until this week, Israel's three-tiered air defense systems have succeeded in intercepting most of the UAVs and missiles fired by Iran and its proxies at the country.

The Iron Dome system intercepted short-range rockets and UAVs fired by Hamas from Gaza, while the David Slingshot intercepted heavier rockets fired from Lebanon, and the Arrow system stopped ballistic missiles from Iran.

During the Iranian attack in April, according to the Israeli army, a 99% interception rate was achieved against the barrage, which included 170 drones, 30 cruise missiles and 120 ballistic missiles.

Israel reportedly had less success in repelling the second barrage, that took place at the beginning of the month, which included more from 180 ballistic missiles.

Intelligence sources told the newspaper that nearly 30 missiles hit the Nevatim Airbase in southern Israel near Be'er Sheva.

200 missiles

The FT report stirred heated debate in Israel. Brigadier General Zvika Chaimovitz, former commander of the air defense system, told Ynet on Tuesday: “The THAAD system is a significant force component and I don't want to compare it with the Arrow system, but in the end, you add dozens more interceptors.”

“It is a significant force that joins our forces, and we have seen scenarios of 200 missiles. It is assumed that if the conflict with Iran continues, we are expected to see more here.”

“The US is a great power. When you look at capabilities, it's not a numbers game. In the end it's a combination of defense and attack,” he remarked.

Yedioth Ahronoth commentator Ron Ben Yishai pointed out in a recent piece that the agreement being formed with the US to place THAAD in Israel is as much a result of American coercion as it is of Israeli necessity.

“The Israeli army’s need is clear: It needs the addition of American interceptor missiles and launchers to deal with the hundreds of missiles that the Iranians may launch, if and when Israel responds to the attack against it on October 1,” he said.

In this case, the quantities and numbers speak for themselves, noted Ben Yishai. “The more missiles are launched in one or two small volleys in order to saturate the defense systems - the more launchers, interceptor missiles and radars are needed,” he continued.

Yair Katz, the head of the workers union at Israel Aircraft Industries, dismissed the claims, stating that “The Financial Times headline is wrong. Israel has enough interceptors to maintain a war on multiple fronts.”

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Protest Letters from Former Israeli Soldiers Lay Bare Profound Rifts over Gaza War

A woman chants slogans as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages, held captive in the Gaza Strip since the October 2023 attacks, hold placards and chant slogans during an anti-government demonstration calling for action to secure their release, outside the Israeli prime minister's residence in Jerusalem on April 17, 2025. (AFP)
A woman chants slogans as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages, held captive in the Gaza Strip since the October 2023 attacks, hold placards and chant slogans during an anti-government demonstration calling for action to secure their release, outside the Israeli prime minister's residence in Jerusalem on April 17, 2025. (AFP)
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Protest Letters from Former Israeli Soldiers Lay Bare Profound Rifts over Gaza War

A woman chants slogans as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages, held captive in the Gaza Strip since the October 2023 attacks, hold placards and chant slogans during an anti-government demonstration calling for action to secure their release, outside the Israeli prime minister's residence in Jerusalem on April 17, 2025. (AFP)
A woman chants slogans as relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages, held captive in the Gaza Strip since the October 2023 attacks, hold placards and chant slogans during an anti-government demonstration calling for action to secure their release, outside the Israeli prime minister's residence in Jerusalem on April 17, 2025. (AFP)

When nearly 1,000 Israeli Air Force veterans signed an open letter last week calling for an end to the war in Gaza, the military responded immediately, saying it would dismiss any active reservist who signed the document.

But in the days since, thousands of retired and reservist soldiers across the military have signed similar letters of support.

The growing campaign, which accuses the government of perpetuating the war for political reasons and failing to bring home the remaining hostages, has laid bare the deep division and disillusionment over Israel’s fighting in Gaza.

By spilling over into the military, it has threatened national unity and raised questions about the army’s ability to continue fighting at full force. It also resembles the bitter divisions that erupted in early 2023 over the government’s attempts to overhaul Israel’s legal system, which many say weakened the country and encouraged Hamas’ attack later that year that triggered the war.

“It’s crystal clear that the renewal of the war is for political reasons and not for security reasons,” Guy Poran, a retired pilot who was one of the initiators of the air force letter, told The Associated Press.

A return to war

The catalyst for the letters was Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision on March 18 to return to war instead of sticking to a ceasefire that had facilitated the release of some hostages.

Netanyahu says the military pressure is needed to force Hamas to release the remaining hostages. Critics, including many families of the hostages, fear that it will get them killed.

One month after Netanyahu resumed the war, none of the 59 hostages held by Hamas have been freed or rescued, of whom 24 are believed to still be alive.

In their letters, the protesters have stopped short of refusing to serve. And the vast majority of the 10,000 soldiers who have signed are retired in any case.

Nonetheless, Poran said their decision to identify themselves as ex-pilots was deliberate — given the respect among Israel’s Jewish majority for the military, and especially for fighter pilots and other prestigious units. Tens of thousands of academics, doctors, former ambassadors, students and high-tech workers have signed similar letters of solidarity in recent days, also demanding an end to the war.

“We are aware of the relative importance and the weight of the brand of Israeli Air Force pilots and felt that it is exactly the kind of case where we should use this title in order to influence society,” said Poran.

Elusive war goals

The war erupted on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas carried out a surprise cross-border attack, killing about 1,200 people in southern Israel and taking 251 others hostage.

Throughout the war, Netanyahu has set two major goals: destroying Hamas and bringing home the hostages.

Israel’s offensive has reduced much of Gaza to rubble and killed more than 51,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials, who don't differentiate between civilians and combatants.

While Israel has come under heavy international criticism over the devastation in Gaza, the domestic opposition to the conflict reflects a widespread belief that Netanyahu’s war goals are not realistic.

Nearly 70% of Israelis now say bringing home the hostages is the most important goal of the war, up from just over 50% in January 2024, according to a study conducted by the Jerusalem think tank Israel Democracy Institute. Nearly 60% of respondents said Netanyahu’s two goals cannot be realized together.

The survey interviewed nearly 750 people and had a margin of error of 3.6 percentage points.

Netanyahu’s opponents have also accused him of resuming the war to pander to his hardline coalition partners, who have threatened to topple the government if he ends the fighting.

Steering clear of politics

Many people were surprised by the military’s snap decision to dismiss air force reservists who signed the protest letter.

The army, which is mandatory for most Jewish men, has long served as a melting pot and unifying force among Israel’s Jewish majority. Many key units rely heavily on reservists, who often serve well into their 40s.

In a statement, the military said it should be “above all political disputes.”

As the protest movement has grown, a military official said the army is taking the letters “very seriously.”

He said it joins a list of challenges to calling up reservists and that the army is working to support them. A growing number of reservists have stopped reporting for duty, citing exhaustion, family reasons, and the financial burden of missing work.

“Any civilian can have his opinions. The problems come when people use the army as a tool promoting their opinions, whatever they may be,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity under military guidelines.

The army’s dilemma

Eran Duvdevani, who organized a letter signed by 2,500 former paratroopers, told the AP that the army faces a dilemma.

“If it will keep on releasing from service the pilots, what about all the others who signed the letters? Will they be discharged from service as well?” he said.

He said he organized the letter to show “the pilots are not alone.” Their concern over the war’s direction “is a widespread opinion, and you have to take it into consideration.”

Although only a few hundred of the signatories are still actively serving, the Israeli military has been stretched by 18 months of fighting and isn’t in any position to be turning away anyone from reserve duty. Many Israelis are also furious that as reservists repeatedly get called up for action, the government continues to grant military exemptions to Netanyahu’s ultra-Orthodox governing partners.

The number of Israelis continuing to report for reserve duty has dropped so low that the military has taken to social media to try to recruit people to keep serving.

Protest letters illuminate widespread divisions

Eran Halperin, an expert in social psychology at Jerusalem’s Hebrew University, called the letters “the most important indication of the erosion of the ethos in this particular war.”

Though the war enjoyed widespread support at the outset, doubts have grown as so many hostages continue to languish in captivity and the Israeli death toll mounts. Nearly 850 soldiers have been killed since the war started.

“It’s very, very difficult to maintain and manage a war in such violent conflict when there are such deep disagreements about the main questions pertaining to the war,” Halperin said.

In recent days, Netanyahu’s office has published a flurry of messages touting meetings with families of the hostages, stressing he is doing everything he can to hasten their return.

On Tuesday, he and his defense minister toured northern Gaza, where Netanyahu praised the “amazing reservists” doing “marvelous work.”

Netanyahu’s office released videos of him marching through the sandy dunes surrounded by dozens of soldiers.

“We are fighting for our existence,” he said. “We are fighting for our future.”