The United States’ diligent work behind the scenes for years between Israel and the Arab states produced the ability to blunt the Iranian attack Saturday, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday.
The United States helped achieve this momentous accomplishment of a region-wide air-defense cooperation pact between Israel and her Sunni partners through the pathway laid out by the Abraham Accords in 2020, the outlet reported.
“The Abraham Accords made the Middle East look different…because we could do things not just under the surface but above it,” one senior Israeli official told the outlet.
Good read on the idea of a Middle East integrated air defense system, using systems and intel from partners across the region, which was put to the test for the first time this weekend —> https://t.co/dj4A3KStI0
— Lara Seligman (@laraseligman) April 15, 2024
The Accords paved the way for the United States to move Israel in 2022 from its European Command to Central Command, which incorporated Israel within the umbrella of U.S.-friendly Arab states, the outlet reported. “Israel’s move into Centcom was a game changer,” Dana Stroul, a former senior official at the Pentagon, reportedly said. Stroul observed that this change in designation made it easier to share intelligence and set up a joint early warning system amongst multiple nations, according to the outlet. (RELATED: ‘No Choice But To Respond’: Israel Weighs Retaliatory Options Against Iran As Biden Admin Urges Restraint)
However, U.S. officials told The Wall Street Journal regional political issues has barred full security cooperation. “It was always going to be gradual, and [Saturday] was an important real-world first step,” Bilal Saab, a previous Pentagon official, told the outlet.
The United States utilized the system leading up to and during the Iranian missile attack on Saturday, according to The Wall Street Journal. The United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Saudi Arabia reportedly shared intelligence over the outline and timing of Iran’s retaliatory strike with the United States who passed on the critical information to the Israelis, officials stated. When the attack came, British, American, Israeli, French and Jordanian pilots shot down the slower moving Iranian drones, officials added, the outlet reported.
Central Command tweeted Sunday that their forces had “successfully engaged and destroyed more than 80 one-way attack uncrewed aerial vehicles (OWA UAV) and at least six ballistic missiles intended to strike Israel from Iran and Yemen.”
Defense of Israel Activities Update
On April 13 and the morning of April 14, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces, supported by U.S. European Command destroyers, successfully engaged and destroyed more than 80 one-way attack uncrewed aerial vehicles (OWA UAV) and at least six… pic.twitter.com/QYyk01o1Vs
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) April 14, 2024
The coordination played off immensely in tandem with existing Israeli air defense systems as up to 99 percent of Iranian projectiles fired toward the Jewish state were shot down, according to The Associated Press.