Israel stops Arrow-3 missile test citing safety failure

JERUSALEM, Dec. 4 (Xinhua) -- Israel's Defense Ministry called off a test of its Arrow-3 anti-ballistic missile system after a safety failure in the simulated target was found on Monday, the ministry said in a statement.

"The trial was cut short after the target (missile) that was launched did not meet the safety codes of the test, which had been set in advance," the statement read.

The target missile was supposed to simulate a ballistic missile fired at Israel in a joint test by the Israeli Defense Ministry and the United States' Missile Defense Agency.

The Arrow-3 is Israel's most advanced missile-defense system. It is part of the country's multi-layer defense doctrine, which includes Iron Dome, a system aimed at intercepting short-range rockets from Gaza; David's Sling, which can intercept medium-range missiles owned by the Iran-backed Hezbollah organization in southern Lebanon; and the long-range Arrow-3 anti-ballistic-missiles system.

In December 2015, Israel's Ministry of Defense said it successfully test-launched the Arrow-3 interceptor, marking the system's first validation. Enditem