Bahrain has dismissed a report claiming that the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states were planning to buy an Israeli Iron Dome anti-missile system.
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Gulf states are in talks to buy the Iron Dome defense system and possibly other Israeli-developed weapons for protection from “a growing arsenal of Iranian missiles”, Sky News reports.
Al Hammadi said the foreign ministry had contacted the television channel and demanded a correction of the statement. First deployed in late March 2011, by late October 2014, the Iron Dome systems had intercepted more than 1,200 rockets shot from the Gaza Strip at Israeli towns and villages.
He said that Iran’s precision missile capacity was certain to increase as a effect of the lifting of sanctions following the internationally brokered agreement with Tehran to end its nuclear weapons development.
“The foreign minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa was asked whether the Gulf States are in ongoing negotiation with the USA to acquire an anti-missile defence system to protect the region from such threats as those emanating from Iran post the nuclear deal”. Such a deal could be worth billions of dollars, according to Sky News.
Like other GCC countries, Bahrain has no diplomatic relations with Israel.
“Iran has been trying to undermine and topple government in our region for years”, he said.
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Such a deal would also include long range interceptor missiles such as David’s Sling, and the Arrow I and Arrow II, which are capable of intercepting supersonic intercontinental ballistic missiles. During Israel’s most recent flare-up with Palestinian terror group Hamas, the Iron Dome intercepted a remarkably high percentage of incoming rockets, saving countless civilians in the process.
