Israel seen lifting nuclear veil in Iran stand-off

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/international/ticker/detail/Israel_seen_lifting_nuclear_veil_in_Iran_stand_off.html?siteSect=143&sid=7098897&cKey=1159188905000

TEL AVIV (Reuters) - In October 1973, with its forces battling to repel invasions by Egypt and Syria, Israel did what had previously been unthinkable: It briefly wheeled its nuclear-capable Jericho-1 missiles out of their secret silos.

That, historians believe, was picked up by U.S. spy satellites and stirred up fears in Washington of a catastrophic flare-up between the Jewish state and the Soviet-backed Arabs. Message received, an urgent American shipment of conventional arms to Israel was quick to follow, and helped turn the war.

With Israel's current arch-foe Iran seen gaining the ability to produce nuclear weapons within a few years, and preventive military options limited, some experts now anticipate another "lifting of the veil" on the assumed Israeli atomic arsenal.

Were that to happen, experts say, the objective would be to establish a more open military deterrence vis-a-vis Iran and perhaps win Israel's nuclear option formal legitimacy abroad.

"No one should simply assume that Israel would stay where it is now with its ambiguous capability if Iran becomes a nuclear power," said Professor Gerald Steinberg, head of the Conflict Management Programme at Bar-Ilan University near Tel Aviv.

[StraightDope]

1. World War III over some stupid argument between ideological extremists...

I always knew that hyper-religious idiots would have something to do with it...

[sui generis]

2. GREAT. just what we need

a bunch of xenophobic whackjob religious nuts with a bunch nuclear bombs.

Woops, that would also describe us :blush:

:sarcasm:

[Junkdrawer]

3. Israel has nuclear arms??? Well, knock me over with a feather...

:sarcasm:

That would have to be the world's worst kept secret.

[lonestarnot]

4. What veil?

[applegrove]

6. Israel & the West have refused to name Israel as the owner of any

nuclear bombs.

[lonestarnot]

7. I was just being naughty again.

Thanks though.

[applegrove]

8. I wasn't sure. Went with being helpfull. In this case: LOL (if you can

actually laugh at a :nuke: !)

[lonestarnot]

9. I appologize for wasting your time and effort!

:hug:

[applegrove]

5. Lifting a vail? Thank god it was Israel. You could get shot for that by

the Taliban!!!

Weird metaphor eh?