Barak: New Iran nuclear facility resistant to regular bombs

DB:"To date, with the exception of the bombs that ended WWI in the Pacific, no country has used nukes, largely because of the MAD, mutually assured destruction, theory. This is our only defense against proliferating nukes." No Don, proliferation is prevented by the NPT, not by MAD. MAD guarantees proliferation. After all you can only obtain the MAD defence if you have nukes. We want to avoid MAD by preventing Iran from getting nukes. DB;"The principle of Mutually assured destruction must be enforced" That's funny DB. Jail terms for non compliance?

"I think the Israeli government should mind their own business. My people in Iran will over throw this illegitimate coup government.." Reza, for what it is worth, I support your quest for self-determination. Unfortunately the Israeli government needs a scapegoat to blame in order to get to the public to go along with the ethnic cleansing of Palestine. They use fear very skilfully to manipulate public opinion. Iran is the "enemy du jour."

The bomb to penetrate the Qom istallation does not exist yet. The laws of Physics does not allow for this.

IRAN is BURNING, This conflagration will spread & seep through all of Iran,till this Nazi-Gestapo-Mullah regime is crushed & thrown on the dung pile of history. At last.The long night of terror will cease & the common people will breathe freely. The reaction: Women will discard their burkahs,& head scarfs. Men will start shaving. Women will again start wearing clothes according to their choice,& not having the Gestapo/Iranian police whipping the woman just because a lock of hair stuck out of her scarf ! Can you believe it ? And the world kept quiet.In fact when anyone of their correspondents used to interview their counterparts they acted like scared mouse & complied with these stupid regulations of attire. There will be a revolution in Iran.& the mob will hang Ahmadienjad & others,just as it has happened in other parts of the world,where people were subjected to impossible laws ! See Italy,1945... Mussolini. See Ceausescu.....Romania. Hamman.Ancient Persia ! Hanged

The Natanz facility may be taken out with the latest bunker busters. But the one at Qom can only be taken out with tactical nukes, since it's buried deeply into a mountain. And that may still not work. There are bunkers buried in mountains that are designed to absorb a nuclear strike. And finally, there may still be more hidden, undiscovered facilities we don't know about.

Iran has its own reasons to not trust US. US have never fought for world democracy. The foreign US policy is: the friend of my enemy is my enemy; the enemy of my enemy is my friend. US have two friends: UK and Israel, and one big enemy: Russia. US fought against Serbia, because Serbia was ally of enemy Russia. US destroyed Iraq, because Iraq was enemy of the friend Israel. US destroyed Mossadeq democracy in Iran in 1952, to protect exploitation of Iran oil by friend UK. US defended the invasion of Ossetia by Georgia because Ossetia was friend of Russia. US even defended fundamentalists in Afghanistan against enemy Russia. US defended friend Israel to have nukes without any inspection. US threaten Nuke plans of Iran, because Iran is enemy of friend Israel, and so on. People in the world are not that naive anymore. If Israel can have nukes, so can Iran. We cannot be silly. People of the World are getting more freethinker and do not accept US yoke. The time of US Tyranny is about to end.

please note; every facility underground has one or more entrances! that being the case, one or more entrances can be obliterated denying access to that facility. a facility without access is sooner or later a dead facility! on the other hand, there are 'bunker bombs' that can vibrate earth and rock to cause fatal damage if delivered to an area over the 'bunker'. and dont rule out an atomic bomb as a method of destruction! there is no 'safe' underground installation! period!

Everyone has the right for nuclear facilities. So why is your country and the rest of the West dosen't accept that right for NK?.

These statements, combined with Israel's frequent indications that it will attack are great cause for concern. It's my understanding that it has no conventional bunker-busting bombs that could do that job and, if they did, would they be considered non-regular bombs? It looks likely that the Zionist fanatics are planning to use nukes, presumably tactical. Their inhumanity toward Pals shows that they have no moral constraints when they think Jews might possibly be threatened. To date, with the exception of the bombs that ended WWI in the Pacific, no country has used nukes, largely because of the MAD, mutually assured destruction, theory. This is our only defense against proliferating nukes. If Israel or any other country uses any nukes, it must be destroyed. No country should permit sales of any goods, especially petroleum, steel and all other other raw materials, to it & prohibit purchase of its goods. Its money should be removed from world currency markets.

Words can not hit Iran nuclear facility either. Israel’s number one priority is to deal with Iranian clear and immediate danger rather than with Shalit, Livni, Aflalo, East Jerusalem or the settlements. The current uprising in Iran provides a golden opportunity to hit not the nuclear facility but rather the heads of the snake. These heads are not protected by bunkers and such. They are not immune to bullets, a poisonous drink or a fatal virus. Even they can not believe that they are still alive. Barak should get his priorities right. The defense Minister of Israel should not explain what can not be done. He should do what is can be done which he doesn’t.

Apparently many of the anti-Israel writers here are from this country. Some have argued that Iran has the "right" because Israel has nukes. How naive! Israel has never transferred their nuclear technology to anybody nor do they intend to. Israel doesn't fund terrorists groups worldwide that threaten western Democracies. Can the same be said for Iran. While Iran holds government sponsored rallies where the crowd shouts "death to America", Israel saves American lives not only with medical advances, but with military advances like armor used by U.S. soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan for their vehicles. If I have to explain this to you, you must be from the country of Moronica? To compare Israel with Iran in any way is that silly. Shame on you for being intentionally naive.

Support for Iranian disidents is our best defence right now. The new generation of bunker busters can take out Iranian sites. Little is publicly known of the advances in these bombs, and that is good, it means Iran doesn't either.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

There's no other way.

When Israel finally begins their withdrawal from the west bank, then you will see unrest like you have never seen before. This will happen even in the event of a partial withdrawal. It is not too early to get your popcorn and a comfortable chair.

Now tell me with a straught face that he doesn't intend to crush his own civilians in the coming forced evacuations. Who crushed him for illegal housemaid after he crushed Hesder Yeshiva Har Bracha? Is that his only reply to his Iran counterpart foresworn publicly to strike Israel first no matter who attacks?

What the US has so far cannot be transported by F-16. It needs scaling down in size and scaling up in penetrating power.. We don't loan out or sell the aircraft that could carry it. Some here are suggesting that Israel use it's own stuff. But those would be nukes. Using nukes as a first strike weapon is nuts. It invited nuke responses, especially from survivors and downwinders. And all the downwinders have proven nukes already, except Afghanistan. And everybody with proven nuke capability also has proven intercontinental capability, too.

How sympathetic that you look to the people of Iran and acknowledging that they need a normal life. when it comes to Israel and its opression of the Palestinians, oh well, their entire society is a suicidal, abnormal, terrorist, jew-hating non-civilians. So who cares? Look in your own mirror before you throw stones at the mirrors of others.

Nobody knows what the outcome will be to the ongoing disquiet in the country. It seems however, that the opposition is hardly going to be trampled over and finished with. What a strange race the paces of the protests and their unforseable outcome, and the pace of Iran's nuclear weapons programme, and both in tandem with the need of israel and the West to stop it.

could have had one in 1948 and at any time since. But they wanted to throw the Jews into the sea. Unfortunately for them we wouldn't allow that, then or now.

"Their defense minister declares he will nuke Israel first" - mentality illness difference The voices in your head tell you that? Citation please. No such statement has ever been uttered. The post of 'mentality difference' is a classic example of how detached from reality the psycho-right is at this time. They imagine threats that do not exist and then claim they have been made.

'The facility in Qom is in a bunker and therefore resistant to regular bombs.' - Ehud Barak Try something bigger. Much bigger. MV

""What the Iranians have recently revealed, according to their own decision, is a site that was under construction for years." - Ehud Barak Yes, it was started as a missile storage bunker. Construction was halted until recently. After intense threats of attack efforts to adopt it to a small enrichment plant were started. At this time no centrifuges are in place, some piping, pumping and cooling equipment has been installed. Iran notified the IAEA of the facility and a day later the USA announced it's existence. One may, as Mr. Barak has, distort the record by ignoring essential facts, but that changes nothing except perceptions. What is important is that the Fordow (not Qum) facility, small as it will be, means that twice as many locations must be successfully attacked to achieve the "destruction" of Iran's enrichment capability.

"1 - Barak is indicating bunker bombs not nukes." - r cummings The USA already has a perfectly satisfactory nuke for the job r cummings. The B61 mod 11, which utilizes the mod 7 physics package in a hardened earth penetrator casing. The problem involves fuses for bunker busters which cannot be fooled by varying rates of penetration caused by they type of protection Iran is currently using.

Says Barak, "These demonstrators are just looking for a normal life," he said. "It bothers me to say the way the free world is responding to what's going on there? They are crushing civilians from above, there." Ehud should heed his own words for that describes the situation for the Palestinians as well. Barak is a hypocrite!

No one is permitted to make nuclear weapons. Not being an NPT member does not mean certain attack. Look at Israel, North Korea, India, and Pakistan; no one attacks their nuke sites. No war is ever justified. People create wars to satisfy their own agenda.

Iran has not signed the Addional Protocol, so it is in its right not to abide with that. By a similar logic, Israel has not signed the NPT, so they are allowed to have nuclear weapons. You can't have it both ways. If Israel is not bound by treaties it did not sign, neither is Iran.

Better still! Why not start the tunnel inside Israel! That way, complete secrecy and no risks.

Your hypocrisy is no less than us. When it comes to hypocirsy you are the champion of the world. What about Iran, whats your opinion on this subject. Tell us what Ehud Barak is saying. Is he write or not? Aby

It seems to be very difficult for you (as usual)to not compare things which are happening today to the things which have nothing to do with the article.

Rather than trying to bomb the Iranian nuclear sites, with at best limited damage, and provoking a barrage of missiles in return, why not try a daring mission: send in special forces to drill a 1-2km long tunnel or shaft underneath the nuclear sites to insert a nuclear device. Then detonate the underground nuclear explosion, destroying the bunkers and rendering the further use of the whole complex impossible for another 1000 years, with only limited collateral damage. A nuclear site destroyed by a nuclear explosion: only fitting.

I think the Israeli government should mind their own business. My people in Iran will over throw this illegitimate coup government and hopefully our new democratically elected leader will not make stupid threats to any nation, including Israel. Then we can turn our backs on each other and have absolutely nothing to do with one another and get on with our own lives individually.

For Barak who do not know the GOD of Israel, it is impossible. For Caleb and Joshua, who know the GOD of Israel, it is possible. Israel needs more Calebs and Joshuas than those who are too old and weak and do not know the GOD of Israel.

in what is the territory of the 1922 mandate for a jewish state arabs have been murdering jews for 100 years ! therefore it is imperative that they are never allowed to return to their normal state . are you looking for bing and bob in morocco or just bashing israel ?

Barak says: "These demonstrators are just looking for a normal life," he said. "It bothers me to say the way the free world is responding to what's going on there? They are crushing civilians from above, there." Is this the same Barak that ordered sharpshooters to shoot & kill 13 young Israeli Arab citizens who were also demonstrating in October 2000!? The Chutzpa of this man has no limits!

corrupt and weak and has lost the support of the people. You can't betray your constituency and expect to have a strong government.

while Israel's defense minister talks about absolute no no to bomb Iran's nuke sites.

an entrance on the surface !

Soooo.....

So is that Barak's way of admitting defeat re Iran and his saying that they have won ?. They can be assured of their nuclear wepons program uninterupted

... a valid comparison indeed... Barak the consummate annalyst... ... the harm that they cause the Pals is equal to terrorism-in-slow-motion...

The people that shot Meir Hai,z"l, were the same people that started the Second Intifada, Al-Aksa Martyrs' Brigades. They are FATAH people. Hamas has always sought to have quiet to show that it can rule effectively, but was frequently sabotaged by rogue squads such as the Resistance Committees. I don't necessarily agree w/fundamentalist values, Islamic or otherwise, but Hamas set itself up to be in charge of the poorest of the poorest whom Arafat and his ilk betrayed as he left his wife millions. We, as Jews are not responsible for such Palestinian failings,and poverty and social inequality is something that must also be addressed in Israel proper. Todah.

not nukes. They are designed to go through a considerable depth of reinforced concrete. Whether the US will supply Israel with sufficiently powerful ones is doubtful. Whether Israel's small fleet of F15E strike aircraft could deliver them effectively without serious loss is also doubtful. And whether any of the principal powers buy Israel's talking up of the 'existential' threat from Iran is also doubtful, everyone is too savvy about Israel's propensity to create diversions via wars. Having Israel involved in an attack on a Muslim nation would be the kiss of death politically. Israel's most useful contribution would be early agreement with the PA that saw an independent Palestine, capital E J'sem, and the removal of a heap of settlers to west of the Green Line. That would remove the principal festering sore in the region.

Dear Ehud, You care that much about the demonstrators in Iran? How are the Palestinians any different in peacefully demonstrating against the Wall? They also seek a return to their normal lives. Really, the Israelis are so much like their American counterparts in their hypocrisy.

does it? actually though, his comment is consistent with the rest of that paragraph; which is oriented towards minimizing the importance placed on the issue by the international community.

o yeah,thxs for the info mr terrible,so i guess what he is implying is that the israelis will be using tactical nuclear weapons to take out irans nuclear sites,ONCE AGAIN THXS FOR THE ADVANCE INFO OF UR BATTLE PLANS?DUH

The bombs the Bush administration ordered don't work yet. The US doesn't plan to incorporate them in our arsenal for some years. We are not rushing for the capability to take out Moscow's subway system. Maybe negotiating with Iran is a better option. Or maybe waiting until they have a stable government. If politicians can manage not to unite the Iranian opposition with the Iranian government, that would probably be a plus. But that would involve not threatening the dinner-jacket.