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The Israel Defense Forces used a locally produced air-to-surface missile dubbed the Rampage in its strike last week on an airfield near the city of Isfahan in central Iran, according to media in Israel.
Israel Aerospace Industries, a government-owned defense contractor, developed the long-range, supersonic Rampage. The missile was identified from photos and the scope of the damage in Friday’s attack, according to Israel National News.
The Rampage is 15 feet long and weighs about 1,250 pounds. It is GPS-guided and features anti-jamming capabilities. The contractor said Rampage missiles are meant for high-priority targets, like airfields or command posts, and can hit a target within a 10-meter radius.
“Israel has the ability to conduct strikes against targets inside Iran without entering Iranian air space from aircraft over Syrian and Iraqi airspace,” Sen. Marco Rubio, Florida Republican, posted on X. “The primary source of violence, conflict, suffering, and instability in the Middle East is the criminal ‘Islamic Republic’ regime which has also oppressed the people of Iran for almost 25 years.”
Friday’s relatively limited attack by Israel was the latest salvo in the dispute between Israel and Iran that has heightened tensions in the region and stoked fears of a greater war in the Middle East.
Since October, Israel has carried out a campaign to root out the militant group Hamas from the Gaza Strip, where it has killed more than 32,000 people and leveled much of the Palestinian enclave, according to Gazan health officials. Hamas launched an Oct. 7 terrorist raid on southern Israel that killed more than 1,200 people and saw more than 200 others taken hostage.
On April 13, Tehran launched a barrage of missiles and drones at Israel in response to an Israeli airstrike two weeks earlier in Damascus, Syria, that killed Brig. Gen. Mohammad Zahedi, a senior Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps commander, and other Iranian officers.
Israel’s response to Iran’s drone and missile attack was relatively muted, but Western officials told the New York Times that the strike was calculated to “deliver a message to Iran” that the IDF could bypass Iran’s defense systems undetected and “paralyze them.”
Israel hasn’t officially commented on last week’s airstrike. Meanwhile, Iran has said damage was negligible and caused by a few drones that were easily dispatched by its military.
On Saturday, the U.S. House passed a much-anticipated bill that includes more than $14 billion in military aid to Israel and more than $9 billion in humanitarian assistance, most of which will go to Gaza.
The bill passed in a 366-58 vote in the House, with 37 Democrats and 21 Republicans voting against it.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later announced on social media that Congress “overwhelmingly passed a much-appreciated aid bill” that demonstrates strong bipartisan support for Israel and defends Western civilization.
“Thank you friends, thank you America!” Mr. Netanyahu posted on X.
Rep. Jared Moskowitz, Florida Democrat, said the war in Gaza is not about Mr. Netanyahu or any other political figure. It’s about the survival of the State of Israel, he said on “Fox News Sunday.”
“You have Iran launching ballistic missiles — 130 of them — towards the state of Israel and remember ballistic missiles could carry a nuclear payload if Iran ever got nuclear weapons,” Mr. Moskowitz said. “Now is not the time to abandon our allies. Everyone is watching. Russia’s watching, China’s watching (and) Iran is watching.”
Rep. Ro Khanna of California was one of 37 Democrats who voted against the funding for Israel.
“This was a stance against a blank check for Netanyahu and [supplying] weapons unconditionally while he’s talking about going into Rafah, where we know where more women and children are going to die,” Mr. Khanna said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.”
Mr. Khanna said it was a “hard vote” and noted that he has approved military funding for Israel in the past, including supporting the country’s Iron Dome air defense system.
“We wanted to make it clear that there has to be a change in strategy and no more famine and suffering in Gaza,” he said.
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
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