The Army Chief of Staff waved Israeli Herzi Halevy Tuesday, the possibility of taking “measures” against Iran He stressed that “its progress in uranium enrichment is more than ever before.”
So far, efforts by world powers to negotiate new limits on uranium enrichment and other projects that could be used for bombs have failed, prompting Israel to threaten force if it deems diplomacy deadlocked.
“I advanced,” Lieutenant General Herzi Halevy said Iran In enriching uranium more than ever before… there are negative developments looming on the horizon that may necessitate (military) action.”
He did not elaborate on the nature of these developments, or what action might be taken and by whom. “We have capabilities, and others have capabilities as well,” Halevy said at the Herzliya Conference, an international security forum, in a clear reference to the United States, an ally. Israel.
split
Experts are divided on whether the Israeli army has the leverage to inflict permanent damage on Iran’s nuclear facilities, which are located in remote, dispersed and fortified places.
Iran denies seeking a nuclear bomb and has vowed a devastating response to any attack. Speculation has been raised that Israel may rely on countries on Iran’s borders as launching points for strikes.
One of these countries, Azerbaijan, rejected this idea despite its strong relations with Israel. “We refrain from interfering in (other countries’) conflicts or problems, including allowing our lands to be used for some operations or adventures,” Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Farid Rzayev said at the conference.
Underground nuclear site
The Associated Press reported Monday that Iran is building a new underground site in the Zagros Mountains to replace an exposed centrifuge manufacturing center at the nearby Natanz nuclear facility, which was hit by an explosion and fire in July 2020.
“This of course limits the ability to launch an attack compared to above-ground facilities, it is easier, of course. But what can be said about this is that there is no place that cannot be reached,” Israeli National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi told the conference.
In the aftermath of the 2020 incident, Iran announced in 2021 that it was working to move some centrifuge manufacturing equipment to “the heart of the mountain near Natanz,” an area where Iranian engineers have been excavating for a long time.
On the other hand, Hanegbi rejected the threat of an Israeli attack explicitly, but indicated that the responsibility rests with the United States when he made it clear that it has huge bombs (GBU-43 / B) that are not in Israel’s arsenal..
“This (the underground facility near Natanz) will take years to complete” anyway, he said. He added that although Washington prefers to pursue diplomacy with Iran, there is not much difference among the allies on possible “red lines” for resorting to military action as a last resort.
France 24/Reuters
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2023-05-23 18:26:48
