Israel Reportedly Declined U.S. Offer of Patriot Missiles

Israel spurned a U.S. offer of Patriot missiles and U.S. crews to operate them just days before Iraq sent Scud missiles crashing into Israeli cities, military sources said today.

Israel already had two Patriot missile batteries under an agreement with Washington in September, but Israeli crews were not fully trained to use the weapon.

Iraq fired at least 11 Scuds at Israel Friday and Saturday, slightly wounding 28 people.

U.S. army batteries of Patriots have shot down a series of Scuds fired at Riyadh and Dhahran in Saudi Arabia since the gulf war broke out Thursday.

Haaretz newspaper also said today that Israel had refused an offer of the Patriots and crews about a week ago. It did not specify who made the offer, and an aide to Defense Minister Moshe Arens, Danny Naveh, denied the report.

“No discussions were held with Israel as to the stationing of Patriot batteries in Israel before the end of last week,” he told Reuters.

Israel shunned the Patriot for years, preferring to develop its own Arrow anti-missile missile, funded by the United States.

The Jewish state apparently underestimated both the extent of the missile threat in the Middle East and the time needed to develop the Arrow, which is not expected to be operational before the mid-1990s, the sources said.