Democratic Kentucky Senate candidate Alison Lundergan Grimes says Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system prevents Hamas terrorists from tunneling into Israel.
Grimes was asked about foreign policy and the conflict between the Israelis and Hamas during a recent interview with the Lexington Herald Leader.
Grimes’ response casts doubt on her grasp of the basic facts in the Middle East.
"The Iron Dome has been a big reason why Israel has been able to withstand the terrorists that have tried to tunnel their way in," Grimes was quoted as saying.
That is not the case.
Iron Dome is a joint U.S.-Israeli missile defense system that is able to track terrorist rockets as they enter Israeli territory and destroy them in mid-air. The system has saved scores of Israeli lives and protected the Jewish state during Hamas’s latest terror campaign, in which some 9,000 rockets have been fired at Israel.
Grimes’s comment is sure to draw the attention of critics who say that she lacks solid foreign policy bona fides.
The tunnels that Grimes refers to are a separate issue for Israel.
Hamas has built a complex network of tunnels beneath the Gaza Strip that are used to transfer weapons and other military materials.
The Israeli Army has made a concerted effort in recent days to locate and destroy these tunnels, which Hamas was planning to use for a large terror operation into Israel.
The Grimes campaign did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
It is unclear whether Grimes believes the Israelis should have used steel, titanium, or a stronger material, such as Kryptonite, to build the dome.