X Band radar to be used to spy on Israel

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'Israel fears US radar base in Negev will reveal IDF secrets'
By JPOST.COM STAFF AND YAAKOV KATZ
 
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Israel is wary of the deployment of the new US high-powered radar facility in the Negev, officials were quoted as saying Thursday.


The X-Band Radar.
Photo: Courtesy

Slideshow: Pictures of the week "It's a like a pair of golden handcuffs on Israel," one top official told Time Magazine.

The magazine reported that IDF officials feared that although the radar would enhance Israel's protection against Iran, it might also reveal Israel's military secrets to the US.

The radar will allow the US to keep a close watch on anything moving in Israeli skies, "even a bee", a top Israeli official, who asked not to be identified, told Time.

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"Even a husband and wife have a few things they would like to keep from each other," said the official. "Now we're standing without our clothes on in front of America."

The X-Band radar's arrival in Israel last Sunday was kept under tight wraps until it was revealed over the weekend by Defense News, an industry newsletter.


 

According to the current plan, US soldiers will control the radar, which will be connected to the Israeli Air Force's Arrow control room in Palmahim.

The Jerusalem Post reported on Sunday that an IDF request to permit Israeli soldiers to control the radar had been declined.

Time went on to say that Israeli officials had expressed concern that the radar might anger Moscow, since its range would allow the US to monitor aircraft over southern Russia, and might prompt Russia to supply Iran and Syria with its S-300 anti-aircraft missiles.

The magazine also reported that Israeli planning and air force officials expressed concern that Defense Minister Ehud Barak did not assess the radar's possible impact on IDF operations before approving it.

The magazine said that Israeli defense experts feared that waves from the X-band radar might throw off the accuracy of a new Gil anti-tank missile also being tested in the Negev. "The Bush Administration is in the mood to give us anything, as long as we don't attack Iran," said one senior official. "So why did we take this radar?"

The system, which came in a convoy of 12 transport planes and together with a 120-member crew, has been set up temporarily at the Nevatim air base in the Negev and will be moved to a permanent site in the next few months.

The high-powered radar, known as FBX-T, will be hooked up to the US military's Joint Tactical Ground Station and, assisted by satellites, will be capable of picking up a ballistic missile shortly after launch at which point it can estimate the time and location of its impact.

Those capabilities will cut the response time of Israel's Arrow anti-missile system, which currently works with a less advanced radar.

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Time Magazine: Israel fears U.S. radar will leave it 'naked in front of America' 
 
By Haaretz Service 
 
Tags: Israel news, U.S., radar   

Security sources in Israel voiced concern that a new American radar system, to be deployed in the Negev next month, will expose Israel's military secrets as it records every movement in Israel's skies, Time Magazine reported Thursday.
One top official complained "It's a like a pair of golden handcuffs on Israel."

According to the sources, the U.S. also offered the same radar system to Turkey and Jordan, but they declined. They expressed concern over the fact that the system will be operated exclusively by U.S. military personnel, leaving Israel with no direct access.   Advertisement
 
The U.S. radar will be able to monitor the take-off of any aircraft or missile up to 1,500 miles away - giving Israel a vital extra 60-70 seconds to react if Iran fired a missile, Israeli military sources told Time Magazine.

Israel has its own radar system trained on Iran, but its range is much shorter. Still, some see several drawbacks for Israel in the radar, and blame Defense Minister Ehud Barak for requesting its deployment in Israel without consulting anyone other than his chief of staff. Some in the upper echelons of the IDF fear that although the radar will enhance Israel's protection against Iran, it may also open up Israel's own military secrets to the Americans.
"Even a husband and wife have a few things they'd like to keep from each other," one source explained. "Now we're standing naked in front of America," he said, stressing that the new radar will be able to detect anything moving in Israel's skies, "even a bee."

Israeli officials also expressed concern that the installation of the radar system on Israeli soil would ignite Moscow's anger, since its range will enable the U.S. to monitor aircraft in the skies over southern Russia. They added that this would only serve to motivate Russia to supply Iran and Syria with advanced anti-aircraft weapons.