Israel Won't Supply Ukraine with Iron Dome System

A missile was launched from the Iron Dome near Ashdod, southern Israel (File photo: AFP)
A missile was launched from the Iron Dome near Ashdod, southern Israel (File photo: AFP)
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Israel Won't Supply Ukraine with Iron Dome System

A missile was launched from the Iron Dome near Ashdod, southern Israel (File photo: AFP)
A missile was launched from the Iron Dome near Ashdod, southern Israel (File photo: AFP)

Several Israeli ministers leaked information that the army and other security services in Tel Aviv were against providing Ukraine with the Iron Dome anti-missile system, fearing it could lead to a more significant crisis with Russia, which in turn would supply Syria with similar designs, and the S-300 and S-400 missiles.

A security official said Thursday that relations with Russia are already tense due to Israel's support of Ukraine.

Tensions increased after reports claimed that Israeli intelligence provided information to Ukraine about the secrets of Iranian drones used by Russia.

According to informed sources, for the past four weeks, the Israeli army halted all operations in Syria over the past four weeks, fearing Russian interference, noting that the last Israeli raid in Syria took place on Sept. 16-17.

Recent statements of Defense Minister Benny Gantz created controversy within Israel after he announced that Tel Aviv would not provide Ukraine with advanced defense systems, noting that the government offered to provide Ukraine with expertise that would allow the development of an intelligent approach to counter air threats.

It seems that this public announcement came with an official decision taken after security deliberations on Tuesday, during which it was decided to issue clear statements refusing to provide Ukraine with weapons to avoid escalation with Russia.

The position aroused strong criticism in Tel Aviv, especially among the left-wing and liberal forces that demand a clear stand in support of Ukraine, but Gantz rejected the criticism, saying that friends in the West understand Israel's sensitive position.

A close associate of Gantz pointed out that Israel's refusal to provide Ukraine with the Iron Dome system to intercept short-range missiles and drones also stems from professional reasons.

He indicated that this anti-missile system is unsuitable for Ukraine because of the country's large area, noting that the Russian aircraft that controls the Ukrainian airspace will be able to target the convoys transporting it from one place to another.

An official source in the Israeli Defense Ministry confirmed that Gantz is coordinating his positions, especially with his Ukrainian counterpart, Alexei Reznikov, noting that the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Yair Lapid, also discussed with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

The source revealed that Kuleba submitted an official request to Israel three days ago to obtain the Iron Dome and other advanced weapons.

He noted that Iran's involvement in the battle creates a new situation that worries Israel, adding that the Iranians are testing their weapons through the Russian army and practically training for war against Israel and other enemies in the Middle East.



Iran's President Visits Those Injured in Port Explosion that Killed at Least 28 People

A helicopter drops water on the fire, Sunday, April 27, 2025, after a massive explosion and fire rocked a port near the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, Iran on Saturday. (AP Photo/Meysam Mirzadeh/Tasnim News)
A helicopter drops water on the fire, Sunday, April 27, 2025, after a massive explosion and fire rocked a port near the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, Iran on Saturday. (AP Photo/Meysam Mirzadeh/Tasnim News)
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Iran's President Visits Those Injured in Port Explosion that Killed at Least 28 People

A helicopter drops water on the fire, Sunday, April 27, 2025, after a massive explosion and fire rocked a port near the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, Iran on Saturday. (AP Photo/Meysam Mirzadeh/Tasnim News)
A helicopter drops water on the fire, Sunday, April 27, 2025, after a massive explosion and fire rocked a port near the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, Iran on Saturday. (AP Photo/Meysam Mirzadeh/Tasnim News)

Iran's president visited those injured Sunday in a huge explosion that rocked one of the Islamic Republic's main ports, a facility purportedly linked to an earlier delivery of a chemical ingredient used to make missile propellant.

The visit by President Masoud Pezeshkian came as the toll from Saturday's blast at the Shahid Rajaei port outside of Bandar Abbas in southern Iran's Hormozgan province rose to 28 killed and about 1,000 others injured.

Iranian state television described the fire as being under control, saying emergency workers hoped that it would be fully extinguished later Sunday. Overnight, helicopters and heavy cargo aircraft flew repeated sorties over the burning port, dumping seawater on the site, The AP news reported.

Pir Hossein Kolivand, head of Iran’s Red Crescent society offered the death toll and number of injured in a statement carried by an Iranian government website, saying that only 190 of the injured remained hospitalized on Sunday. The provincial governor declared three days of mourning.

Private security firm Ambrey says the port received missile fuel chemical in March. It was part of a shipment of ammonium perchlorate from China by two vessels to Iran, first reported in January by the Financial Times. The chemical used to make solid propellant for rockets was going to be used to replenish Iran’s missile stocks, which had been depleted by its direct attacks on Israel during the war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Ship-tracking data analyzed by The AP put one of the vessels believed to be carrying the chemical in the vicinity in March, as Ambrey said.

“The fire was reportedly the result of improper handling of a shipment of solid fuel intended for use in Iranian ballistic missiles,” Ambrey said.

In a first reaction on Sunday, Iranian Defense Ministry spokesman Gen. Reza Talaeinik denied that missile fuel had been imported through the port.

“No sort of imported and exporting consignment for fuel or military application was (or) is in the site of the port,” he told state television by telephone. He called foreign reports on the missile fuel baseless — but offered no explanation for what material detonated with such incredible force at the site. Talaeinik promised authorities would offer more information later.

It’s unclear why Iran wouldn’t have moved the chemicals from the port, particularly after the Beirut port blast in 2020. That explosion, caused by the ignition of hundreds of tons of highly explosive ammonium nitrate, killed more than 200 people and injured more than 6,000 others. However, Israel did target Iranian missile sites where Tehran uses industrial mixers to create solid fuel — meaning potentially that it had no place to process the chemical.

Social media footage of the explosion on Saturday at Shahid Rajaei saw reddish-hued smoke rising from the fire just before the detonation. That suggests a chemical compound being involved in the blast, like in the Beirut explosion.

Meanwhile on Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin deployed several emergency aircraft to Bandar Abbas to provide assistance, Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported.