CAIRO: Israel has deployed its Iron Dome defense system aimed at stopping rocket attacks from the Sinai Peninsula along the Egyptian border, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) officials said on Monday. In comments to Italy's RIA Novosti, an army representative said that it has been erected ahead of schedule as a result of rocket fire in recent days reportedly coming from Egyptian soil. “Iron Dome is currently being tested all across Israel and it is in this context that it is being based in Eilat,” the official was quoted as saying. An Israeli military spokeswoman said the battery “will be placed near Eilat as part of an operational deployment program which includes changing the locations of the batteries from time to time," in comments published by Reuters news agency. Iron Dome, a system produced with American funding, uses radar-guided missiles to blow up Katyusha-style rockets with ranges of 5-70 km (3-45 miles) and mortar bombs in mid-air, Reuters said. The border with Egypt has become a contentious issue in recent years, with thousands of African migrants attempting to cross into Israel from Egypt. The result has seen Israel over the past month begin to deport Africans from the country in a move that has human rights groups angered. Also, in early August, militants attacked an Egyptian border outpost, killing 16 soldiers and wounding 7 others, in the worst attack on Egypt military in years. It has prompted a massive response from Cairo, which has seen more and more military being deployed to the restless peninsula in an effort to cut down on militant activity.
