Israel launched a new spy satellite into orbit from a launch pad in the center of the country early Monday morning, the Defense Ministry said.
Ofek 16 is an electro-optical reconnaissance satellite with advanced technologies, all made in Israel.
Once operational, the satellite will be led by the Israel Defense Forces and orbit alongside other Israeli military satellites.
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“Our satellite network allows us to see the entire Middle East, and even a little more than that,” Shlomi Sudari, head of the Israel Aerospace Industries space program, said in a briefing.
In this photo published by the Office of the Spokesman of the Israel Defense Ministry, the reconnaissance satellite “Ofek 16” takes off at the Palmachim air base in central Israel on Monday, July 6, 2020. The new satellite, which is rapidly entered orbit, joins a collection of spies. satellites that Israel has deployed in recent years.
(Office of the Spokesman of the Israel Defense Ministry through the AP)
In a conference call with Fox News’ Amnon Hariri, the head of the Defense Department’s Space Department said the launch went smoothly.
“We hope that one day we can monitor the region or any other place that interests us 24 hours a day and have videos,” he explained. “Ofek 16 now brings us closer to our goal.”
The satellites will give Israel better coverage and early warnings of any Iranian activity, such as planned Iranian missile launches and tests, and information on activities at sites where components of Iran’s nuclear program are developed and produced.
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Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said the launch of Ofek 16 is a “great achievement for the defense establishment, the defense industries in general and Israel’s aerospace industries in particular.”
“The technological and intelligence superiority of the State of Israel is the cornerstone of its security,” he wrote on Twitter. “We will continue to strengthen and strengthen the strength of Israel on all fronts and in all places.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote on his social media account: “We never stop our security efforts.” The success of Ofek 16 expanding our capabilities to fight against Israel’s enemies, near and far, at sea, on the ground, in the air and in space. “
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The launch came amid recent explosions at Iranian infrastructure, including one at the Natanz nuclear facility that caused “significant damage” to a building used to develop advanced centrifuges. Iran’s top security body has said it is holding conclusions on the cause of the incident for security reasons.
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Israel is among the 13 countries in the world that are capable of launching satellites. Iran announced in April 2020 that it had finally managed to launch a military satellite into space.
