Israel successfully launched the Ofek 19 Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) advanced observation satellite into space on the night of Sept. 2, a move designed to enhance the nation’s intelligence-gathering capabilities against enemies throughout the Middle East.

The launch, conducted by the Ministry of Defense and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), comes as the Israeli defense establishment moves to expand its foothold in space, a domain whose critical importance was proven during the “Rising Lion” war with Iran in June this year.

The role of satellites and particularly radar satellites in that conflict was critical. During the 12-day operation, Israel’s space assets captured over 12,000 satellite images across Iranian territory, with hundreds of thousands of square kilometers (miles) surv

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