Israeli navy prepares for potential attack on Iran

Visit our News page The Obama administration’s linking of Iran’s drive for nuclear weapons to the creation of a Palestinian state has put Israel in a very precarious position. They are in fact two separate issues and should be managed as such. Why? If Iran’s nuclear saber-rattling is all about its concern that Israel has “occupied” Palestine, and that the “occupiers” must be removed, then the creation of a Palestinian state should end Iran’s development of nuclear weapons, right? Does any serious observer believe Iran will halt its march to nuclear weaponry if a Palestinian state were created tomorrow? Time and again the Obama administration is sending the wrong message to the world about Iran. Israel’s leaders carefully measure their public words regarding the Obama administration’s diplomatic signals, but, as the article below demonstrates, they know that a nuclear-armed Iran is an unacceptable option. During last year’s presidential campaign, candidate Barack Obama said the same thing. Will President Barack Obama act accordingly? We can only hope so. July 16, 2009 Israeli navy in Suez Canal prepares for potential attack on Iran Sheera Frenkel in Jerusalem http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article6715412.ece Two Israeli missile class warships have sailed through the Suez Canal ten days after a submarine capable of launching a nuclear missile strike, in preparation for a possible attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities. The deployment into the Red Sea, confirmed by Israeli officials, was a clear signal that Israel was able to put its strike force within range of Iran at short notice. It came before long-range exercises by the Israeli air force in America later this month and the test of a missile defence shield at a US missile range in the Pacific Ocean. Israel has strengthened ties with Arab nations who also fear a nuclear-armed Iran. In particular, relations with Egypt have grown increasingly strong this year over the “shared mutual distrust of Iran”, according to one Israeli diplomat. Israeli naval vessels would likely pass through the Suez Canal for an Iranian strike. “This is preparation that should be taken seriously. Israel is investing time in preparing itself for the complexity of an attack on Iran. These manoeuvres are a message to Iran that Israel will follow up on its threats,” an Israeli defence official said. It is believed that Israel’s missile-equipped submarines, and its fleet of advanced aircraft, could be used to strike at in excess of a dozen nuclear-related targets more than 800 miles from Israel. Ahmed Aboul Gheit, the Egyptian Foreign Minister, said that his Government explicitly allowed passage of Israeli vessels, and an Israeli admiral said that the drills were “run regularly with the full co-operation of the Egyptians.” Two Israeli Saar class missile boats and a Dolphin class submarine have passed through Suez. Israel has six Dolphin-class submarines, three of which are widely believed to carry nuclear missiles. Israel will also soon test an Arrow interceptor missile on a US missile range in the Pacific Ocean. The system is designed to defend Israel from ballistic missile attacks by Iran and Syria. Lieutenant-General Patrick O’Reilly, the director of the Pentagon’s Missile Defence Agency, said that Israel would test against a target with a range of more than 630 miles (1,000km) — too long for previous Arrow test sites in the eastern Mediterranean. The Israeli air force, meanwhile, will send F16C fighter jets to participate in exercises at Nellis Air Force base in Nevada this month. Israeli C130 Hercules transport aircraft will also compete in the Rodeo 2009 competition at McChord Air Force base in Washington. “It is not by chance that Israel is drilling long-range manoeuvres in a public way. This is not a secret operation. This is something that has been published and which will showcase Israel’s abilities,” said an Israeli defence official. He added that in the past, Israel had run a number of covert long-range drills. A year ago, Israeli jets flew over Greece in one such drill, while in May, reports surfaced that Israeli air force aircraft were staging exercises over Gibraltar. An Israeli attack on a weapons convoy in Sudan bound for militants in the Gaza Strip earlier this year was also seen as a rehearsal for hitting moving convoys. The exercises come at a time when Western diplomats are offering support for an Israeli strike on Iran in return for Israeli concessions on the formation of a Palestinian state. If agreed it would make an Israeli strike on Iran realistic “within the year” said one British official. Diplomats said that Israel had offered concessions on settlement policy, Palestinian land claims and issues with neighboring Arab states, to facilitate a possible strike on Iran. “Israel has chosen to place the Iranian threat over its settlements,” said a senior European diplomat. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ACT for America P.O. 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