Will the Israelis be the ones to save us from another nuclear program in the Middle East? David Twersky reports:
Tensions with Israel are rising, as Iran fears an Israeli preemptive strike against the facilities it may be hiding from International Atomic Energy Agency inspection. That fear was based not only on the historical record–Israel took out Iraq’s reactor at Osirak in 1984–but on a statement by Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz. (The Israeli minister said that in preparing an attack on Iranian nuclear facilities, “steps will be taken so that Iranian citizens will not be harmed.”) Mr. Mofaz’s tough talk followed a public sermon last December in Tehran by the still-powerful former president, Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani.
“If a day comes when the world of Islam is duly equipped with the arms Israel has in possession,” Mr. Rafsanjani said, “the strategy of colonialism would face a stalemate because application of an atomic bomb would not leave any thing in Israel but the same thing would just produce damages in the Muslim world.” In other words, in Iranian eyes, the purpose of an Islamic bomb is to eliminate the deterrent effect of the Israeli bombs. One big Islamic bomb would destroy Israel, while many Israeli bombs, while hurtful, would only put a dent in the Islamic world. No wonder Mr. Mofaz suggests that an attack is being planned.