That was in the 90’s tho
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tactical_High_Energy_LaserTechnology has evolved and most importantly the threat factor has evolved. Hamas and Hezbollah can now cripple the Israeli economy by forcing the population to shelter in place and being able to hit essentially every corner of Israel.
When THEL was tested the threat was much more localized to the border towns of northern Israel and at the time the settlements in Gaza which in the overall scheme of things it was more of a nuisance than a strategic threat.
If Hamas’s capability to strike Israel remained static and was limited to circa 2004-2005 when the first rocket strikes began to appear even Iron Dome might not have been developed and deployed at the scale it has today.
