Saul Sadka
Iron Beam is now in action. It reduces the cost of intercepting enemy projectiles from $50,000 per shot to under $1. For years leading up to 2023, Israel had claimed that its laser interception system was nearly ready—perhaps to generate commercial interest. It is now known that Sinwar’s fear that his stockpile of 20,000 missiles would soon be obsolete contributed to his decision to attack when he did. Revealing the system in advance was, in hindsight, a major strategic error. Yet it worked out well: it prompted Sinwar to launch his attack prematurely and without coordination with Hezbollah and Iran—something that has since led to the collapse of the entire Axis of Resistance arrayed against Israel. This is yet another example of an Israeli strategic failure that inadvertently worked in its favor.