An advanced US radar deployed in Israel in September to help protect the country against Iranian missile attacks will become operational in the coming weeks, a US military spokesman said over the weekend. The X-Band radar, located near the Egyptian border in southern Israel, is reported to be capable of tracking targets the size of a baseball from distances of close to 4,800 kilometers and will be linked up to Israel's Arrow 2 ballistic missile defense system. US Army Maj. Bryan Woods, a spokesman for the military team in Israel, said the radar should be operational by mid-December. "There has been a lot of work involved," Woods was quoted as saying in the US military's newspaper Stars and Stripes. "It's been a joint effort in making it come together. They [the Israelis] are very confident in the system and are happy to have it in their country." The EUCOM mission involves 120 US military personnel, including soldiers, airmen and Marines. According to the paper, after the radar is operational, management and operation of the project will be handed over to Defense Department contractors, which will allow the troops to return to their units in Europe. "The radar will remain US-owned and -operated," Woods said.