Israel has successfully tested a rocket defense system capable of seeking and destroying rockets with a range of up to 70 kilometers, said the country's defense ministry on Thursday.
The ministry said in a statement that the system, named 'Iron Dome', would be operational within a year, and added it would set up a special battalion to operate it.
It added that during the tests, the Iron Dome system successfully intercepted rockets that were "of the same type that were fired in recent years at Israel."
The new rocket defense system is expected to protect Israeli civilians in the country's southern and northern regions from rocket attacks from the Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip and the Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.
Earlier, Israel had launched a 22-day offensive against the Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip on 27th December in response to continued rocket fire into southern Israel by Palestinian militants in Gaza.
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