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Q+A: Could Israel Strike Over Nuclear Concerns?
Reuters
Wednesday, September 16, 2009

“Risks of a strike by Israel, even one not endorsed by its main allythe United States, are significant.”

This article addresses the many essential questions that have arisen in the face of the growing tensions betweenIsrael and Iran. Because a former Israeli Defense Official hypothesized yesterday that “Israel will attack Iran’s nuclear sites if crippling internationalsanctions are not imposed this year,” the possibility of an added aspect to the middle-eastern conflict is more pressing than ever. Israel doesn’t believe Iran’sclaim that the uranium it has been steadily enriching is solely for energy. These doubts are well founded given that Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad hasboldly stated that Israel should be “wiped of the map.” According to Israel, the threat of an Iranian bomb is a menace it can’t afford, and refuses to tolerate.While a pledge from Iran supported by global supervision and intelligence data swearing not to use its uranium to create nuclear weapons might fulfill aminimum requirement to quell Israel’s urge to attack, it’s likely that the United State’s probably refusal to back the military strike is the only cause of Israel’shesitation. Though Israel would be reluctant to anger its primary ally, historical events (Israel’s air strikes that resulted in the destruction of Iraq andSyria’s nuclear reactors in 1981 and 2007 respectively) suggest that Israel has both the means and the desire to attack Israel’s nuclear development sites.