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October 7 Hamas Attacks: How Life Changed at Israel's Borders, One Year

In the past year, the officials said, the defense ministry has placed "significant orders with local companies." The move toward producing and developing technology inside Israel covers all aspects of the military, defense officials said.
In practice, this means "all hands on deck, 24 hours a day," a spokesperson for state-owned Rafael Advanced Defense Systems told Newsweek.
Shortly after October 7, around a fifth of its workforce were pulled away into military service, the company said. Since January, Rafael has recruited more than 1,000 employees, a spokesperson said, with plans in place to recruit a further 2,000 by the end of 2024. A separate industry source said "thousands" of personnel are being recruited across the defense industry.
Elbit Systems announced several new contracts with the defense ministry recently. In August, the Israeli defense contractor said it will build a manufacturing facility to produce $340 million of ammunition for the ministry over 10 years. "It's quite obvious the company will continue to grow quite rapidly in the coming years," CEO Bezhalel Machlis told Reuters.
Israeli defense and industry sources are keen to stress that the defense firms and government are balancing upping production of existing systems with the need to keep ahead of the curve. The government is tipping "significant resources" into research and development for next-generation technologies, defense officials said.
The Iron Beam—Rafael's pioneering high-energy laser weapon system primarily developed to intercept drones—is still expected to be ready by the end of 2025, Newsweek understands.
The industry has been tasked with expanding air defense production, one industry source said, attributing this not only to Israel's needs, but also to a global shift in how important such stocks are considered. The war in Ukraine, with Kyiv repeatedly calling for more air defenses, has contributed to this surge.
A different industry source said there was "definitely" a spike in interest in Israeli-made air defense systems, including from other nations.
With Hezbollah sending cheap drones over the border, the likes of the Iron Dome and its expensive interceptor missiles are not always the best solution for shooting down incoming uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs). "We have a challenge...locating and shooting down those drones," said Lieutenant Colonel Dotan Razili, speaking to the media in Mitzpe Hila, around five miles from the Lebanon border. "It's a challenge for the Western world. In Ukraine, they use other weapons systems, but it is still a challenge."
Asked if the northern forces have enough low-tech solutions for Hezbollah drones, Razili said: "Not as much as we'd like." An Israeli industry source said all defense companies in Israel were working toward a solution for inexpensive drone attacks. Another said this may include looking back at older systems.

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