Negev Iris. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – Residents of Israeli communities close to the Gaza border have approached the GOC Southern Command to request that Iron Dome missile-defense systems in the area be relocated in order to protect a delicate endangered flower that lives in the area.

According to a report in Ynet, residents told Maj. Gen. Herzl Halevi and Israel Air Force Commander Maj. Gen. Amikam Norkin that “we are grateful for and appreciate your work, and there is no need to explain how meaningful your presence here is for us and for our sense of security. But we feel it’s fundamental that we work together to preserve the surrounding sites of nature.”

The flower in question is the Iris Mariae, otherwise known as the “Negev Iris,” which residents say is at risk due to the increased number of troops, and the size and power of the machinery.

Military authorities replied that their positions were decided in coordination with regional councils, the Nature and Park Authority, and the Jewish National Fund, but that they would acquiesce to the request and move the Iron Dome systems to alternative locations, again in consultation with all the authorities.