Israel says it used laser air-defence system in combat for first time

Israel has for the first time deployed high-energy laser air-defence systems in combat, shooting down dozens of drones and rockets fired from Lebanon by the Hezbollah militia, the Defence Ministry said on Friday. 

The prototypes, developed by the ministry’s R&D directorate together with the air force and state-owned Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, have been operational since 2024 and “neutralise targets within seconds” at a cost of only a few dollars per shot, the ministry said.

The smaller mobile units will complement the more powerful Iron Beam system, scheduled for delivery to the Israel Defence Forces by end-2025. 

While lasers are cheaper than Iron Dome interceptors, analysts note they are weather-dependent and less effective against high-speed missiles, but the battlefield debut marks “the dawn of a new era in air defence,” the ministry added.