Israel carried out a successful night-time test of its Hetz (Arrow) anti-missile missile system in what public television described as a "message to Iran". A Hetz fired from the Palmahim base, south of the commercial capital Tel Aviv, intercepted a missile fired from a high-altitude aircraft, the television said.
Public radio said the missile firing was designed to imitate Iran's Shahab-3, which has a range sufficient to reach Israel.
A defence ministry spokesman said a statement would be released later.
It was the first test of the anti-missile missile since early December 2005, when the military announced the system was fully operational.
For the first three years after its launch in 1988, the United States paid 80 percent of the project's cost, but now the costs are shared equally.
Since the 2003 overthrow of Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq, the project's primary focus has been Iran, which Israel now sees as its main threat.
