Israel tests anti-missile system

A defence ministry spokesman said a statement would be released  later.

It was the first test of the anti-missile missile since early December 2005, when the military announced the system was fully operational.

For the first three years after its launch in 1988, the United States paid 80 per cent of the project’s cost, but now the costs are shared equally.

Since the 2003 overthrow of Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq, the  project’s primary focus has been Iran, which Israel now sees as its main threat.