Iran is now able to produce atomic weapons, Israel’s top military intelligence officer told his country’s Cabinet on Sunday, sounding the highest-level warning that Israel’s arch-enemy has achieved independent nuclear capability.
Participants in the Cabinet meeting said the chief of military intelligence, Major General Amos Yadlin, did not say Iran already has the bomb. However, he said, Iran has “crossed the threshold” and has the expertise and materials needed to make one.
The participants spoke on condition of anonymity because the Cabinet meeting was closed. They said Yadlin told them that Iran continues to accumulate uranium for enrichment and hopes to exploit the Obama administration’s intention to open a dialogue as a cover for developing nuclear weapons.
Israeli officials have long identified a nuclear Iran as the most serious threat to the Jewish state.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has repeatedly made comments that have been interpreted as calling for destruction of Israel and Iran has tested long-range missiles that could put Israel within range.
Israel’s long-held policy is that the world must cooperate to defuse the Iranian nuclear threat. While not directly threatening to take out Iran’s nuclear facilities, Israel has avoided taking the military option off the table.
Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu, who is putting together the next Israeli government, for years has said that Iran represents an existential threat to the Jewish state. He is seen as more likely than other Israeli leaders to order an attack.
However, most experts believe that wiping out the Iranian nuclear program is beyond the ability of Israel’s military.
Iran says its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes.
Israel has been watching carefully how Washington develops its policy toward Iran. Unlike his predecessor, US President Barack Obama has called for diplomatic contacts with Iran as a way of persuading its rulers to drop their nuclear ambitions.
In talks last week with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Israeli officials raised concerns about Iran’s intentions and questions about the Obama administration’s approach.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he did not object in principle to the idea of US-Iran talks, but he warned that Iran could use the contacts as a stalling device while it readies its nuclear arsenal. Olmert said that would be unacceptable.
Israeli strategic analyst Yossi Alpher said Yadlin’s determination must be taken seriously.
“It clearly renders the entire issue of how to deal with Iran both for the Obama administration and for Israel more urgent,” he said. “It affects possible diplomatic initiatives, sanctions and the military option.”
Experts quoted in foreign publications believe Israel has several hundred nuclear weapons. Israel neither confirms nor denies reports about its nuclear capabilities.
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