Israeli Jets Run Iran Attack Drill

NY Post ^ | 9/8/07 | NY Post

[freedom44]

JERUSALEM - Israeli warplanes may have been testing air routes for a possible attack against Iran when they were fired on by Syrian forces, experts said yesterday.

The official Syrian Arab News Agency Thursday quoted a military official as saying that Israeli jets broke the sound barrier flying over northern Syria earlier in the day, then "dropped munitions" onto deserted areas after being shot at by Syria's air defenses.

Israel's air force may have been testing an air path to Iran, in case it decides to carry out an attack against that country's nuclear facilities, analysts said.

The corridor of northern Syria over which the aircraft allegedly flew is the closest straight line from the Mediterranean Sea, where Israel has easy access, to Iran.

Israel says it prefers to let the international community confront Iran's nuclear ambitions, but a lone Israeli attack is not out of the question.

"Of course Israel wants to let the Americans do that," said Ephraim Inbar, director of the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies.

"But if we are left alone, the Israeli army is preparing to deal with the Iranian nuclear threat - if the political level allows it to - and this could have been a part of that."

[freedom44]

On or off the Iran ping list.

[Mr. Mojo]

....after being shot at by Syria's air defenses.

Syrian ABMs showing their usual (in)effectiveness. Come on, Assad. Show some spine and send up some MiGs. Oh, you don't want a replay of the 86 - 0 rout that happened in '82? Yeah, don't blame ya.

[#1CTYankee]

Pretty sad if that's the case, we need to take out these facilities as well as military infrastructure, refineries and electrical power grids.

Time is ticking by, the longer we wait the the likelihood Israel will be hit grows .

[G Larry]

Now that Israel knows where Syria’s radar’s are, they’ll be the first to go.

[Issaquahking]

History getting ready to repeat itself?

N.H. Debate, a presidential candidate remembers back...


HUNTER: And you would look, probably, at the pattern of what the Israelis did with the Osirak reactor that Saddam Hussein built back in the 1980s, when eight F-16s came over the horizon and took care of that problem. I would say this: You can't allow them to have a nuclear device. You would have to obviously work very closely with all allies, not just the Israelis, but hopefully have help from Europe, help from the Brits, help from the Aussies.

[RightWhale]

• this could have been a part of that

  Or not. Ephraim either doesn't know or doesn't want to say.

[yoe]

...Russian bombers up and now these Israeli Jets, (notice the "war plane" speak)who knows what is going on as Russia and others are getting mighty jittery with all the nuclear sword rattling from Iran…….remember Saddam’s crying wolf endlessly? Some where along the line, someone is going to take him seriously and ‘smote’ (a little biblical lingo) the pint sized nut, and I ‘spect that someone will have most of the world on their side to do the job most efficiently.

[freedom9]

Jdg 12:2 And Jephthah said unto them, I and my people were at great strife with the children of Ammon; and when I called you, ye delivered me not out of their hands.

[Bender2]

As much as I would like to see Israel strike Iran and do the job, I fear the distance and force needed for success are too great for their elite, yet small, air force. Only the US has the resources to execute the mission. I pray we will have the will...

[Fitzcarraldo]

the idea is to take out damascus on the way to iran

[blackie]

Roger that!!

[Kevmo]

practice makes perfect

If the Israelis had not knocked out the Iraqi nuclear reactor in the early 1980’s, we would have been staring down a nuclear armed Saddam Hussein.

[SJackson]

If you'd like to be on this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.

High Volume. Articles on Israel can also be found by clicking on the Topic or Keyword Israel. or WOT [War on Terror]

----------------------------

[sofaman]

Ping

Called it.