Raytheon has been awarded a $242 million contract for Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) Block 2 guided missile round pack, missile ordnance alterations, and spares for the US Navy, Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, according to a US Department of Defense release.

The $242,090,000 firm-fixed-price contract includes options which – if exercised – could bring the cumulative value to $529,774,921.

The modern battlefield is based on network-centric warfare and communication is becoming a combat-facilitating element. The two primary challenges facing armed forces interested in implementing this technological combat doctrine are providing a substantial bandwidth in a non-sovereign territory and managing the frequency spectrum dynamically. Both challenges are effectively addressed by the BNet system by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.

Thales announced it had begun production of the Sea Fire digital radar, a naval sensor designed to track new weapons including supersonic missiles.

The Israel Security Agency is teaming up with Tel Aviv University’s TAU Ventures to set up an accelerator program for startups. The first round of the program will focus on startups developing technologies utilizing artificial intelligence, natural language processing, robotics, and data science.

The new accelerator program, which opens in June, is recruiting early-stage startups with viable technology, according to an announcement made on Wednesday. They don’t have to be focused on the military and defense market.

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman addressed today the escalated tensions along the northern border with Syria and commented on the IAF’s response to a large-scale rocket attack launched by Iranian forces early Thursday morning.

“The Iranians tried to attack Israel, but no rocket fell in Israeli territory. Some of them fell in Syria, and some were intercepted by the Iron Dome. We hit nearly all Iranian infrastructures in Syria,” Lieberman said at the annual IDC Herzliya Conference. “They must understand: If it rains on us, it will pour on them.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu left for Moscow on Wednesday morning for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin – their eighth over the past two years.

President Putin had personally invited Prime Minister Netanyahu to participate alongside him in the events of Russia's annual Victory Day.

The two leaders, joined by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, attended Russia's military parade marking the anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany.

Former CIA officer Jerry Chun Shing Lee, who was charged earlier this year with retaining classified information, is now accused of espionage. He was indicted on Tuesday in federal court in Alexandria, Va. after being held in Alexandria’s jail since January.

When the IAF airbase in Lod was shut down in 2008, the Heavy Transport Division was relocated to Nevatim AFB. As a result, the airbase's munitions departments were joined into one – the IAF Munition Systems Department. “The department works with the Fighter Division and the Heavy Transport Division,” said Maj. A., Commander of Nevatim AFB's Munition Systems Department. “The department's missions are varied and complex – from transportation of the munitions and attachment of the munitions to the aircraft, through safety inspections and to maintenance work.”

Last month, Israel celebrated 70 years of independence. Since 1948, the Jewish State had managed to survive several wars and thousands of skirmishes and incidents in the context of the Arab-Israeli conflict. In 1948, there were only 600,000 Jews in Israel. Now, there are more than six million. They have all kinds of problems, but they have also achieved much. Their economy is doing pretty well, and they possess a powerful military, thanks also to their strong ties with their American patron.

Israel-based aerostat company RT LTA Systems is entering the Australian market. Through cooperation with a local partner, RT's aerostats will be available for lease on a "pay by the hour" plan. The leasing includes the operation of the system by the company's professional local staff.