MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th July, 2020) Israel Aerospace Industries and the country's Ministry of Defense have received the first images from the recently launched Ofek 16 reconnaissance satellite that has entered orbit, Amnon Harari, head of the Space and Satellite Administration of Israel's Defense Ministry, said on Tuesday.
"This is the most significant milestone since the launch of the Ofek 16 satellite. The images we received from the satellite are of excellent quality. We will continue the orderly process of transferring the satellite to operational use, anticipating that over the years, the system will provide great intelligence to the defense establishment," Harari said in a press release.
The satellite was successfully launched on July 6 from the Palmachim spaceport in central Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after the launch that the satellite will increase Israel's ability to monitor and react to hostile threats.
The first Israeli Ofek satellite entered orbit in 1988, and the most previous launch took place in 2016.
