United Press International, JERUSALEM: A retired Israeli general who planned the demolition of Iraq's nuclear reactor in 1981 said this week that it would now be technically “easier” to destroy Iran's nuclear facilities in a pre-emptive air strike.
“A modern air force, first and foremost the U.S. Air Force but also Israel's… (would find it) easier to do something similar in Iran… today. Technology has changed, the intelligence technology has changed. Today we know much more than what we used to know and especially the technology for attack has changed,” Maj. Gen. in the reserves Isaac Ben Israel said. Ben Israel now heads Tel Aviv University's security studies program.
One U.S. stealth plane, an F-117 or a B-2, can “drop its bombs (and) accurately destroy the targets the planners decided it should destroy… (It could) enter Iran, leave Iran, and the Iranians won't know it is there,” he told a conference marking the 25 anniversary of Israel's attack in Iraq.
Satellites, photography equipment and intelligence gathering means are so advanced today that “what existed in 1981 seems… like the Middle Ages,” said retired intelligence Brig. Gen. Amos Gilboa, who was involved in the preparations for that attack.
In 1981 Israeli intelligence had detailed plans of the Osirak reactor rising southeast of Baghdad. They knew the inner walls' locations and thickness.
To Read Full Article, Click Here
