These devices, designed to stop advancing troops, have a power equivalent to 1,000lb of conventional explosives, which is about half the size of the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. OK, this proves it, reporters are just stupid. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were about 15Kt, not 1t. And I doubt these suitcase nukes would be .5t. IIRC, our smallest tacticals are about .5 Kt.
If these suitcase nukes really are .5t, then... BIG F'N DEAL! OOO, they might get to put another SMALL HOLE in the side of a FRIGATE! We're DOOMED!
The smallest reliably detonated mass of P239 (plutonium) is about 13kg. Its natural yield is about .1 kilotons (100 tons) without fusion boosting. That is still one hell of a bang, not to mention a dirty one if detonated at ground level. Our tactical nukes are 5 kilotons and larger due to treaty restrictions because some bonehead decided if they were produced in smaller sizes the big bad USA might use them without proper provocation. (????)