Israel to shut down Dimona nuclear reactor should war break out
IDF and the IAEC prepared for possibility of an attempted attack on the reactors during a conflict with Iran, Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon or Hamas and other Palestinian organizations in Gaza.
By Amir Oren Tags: Israel nuclear IDF Gaza IAF Hamas IranNuclear activity at the reactors at Dimona and Nahal Sorek will desist should missiles attack Israel's home front. The aim of such nuclear stoppage would be to prevent damage to the reactors' outlying area, should missiles penetrate the facilities' defense shields. A decision for such a stoppage was reached by the Israel Atomic Energy Commission, in coordination with the IDF Home Front Command.
The working assumption shared by the Home Front Command and the IAEC management officials responsible for the two reactors is that the multilayered defense systems, which feature anti-missile missiles calibrated to intercept missiles at various heights, along with fortified installations, should be sufficiently effective to minimize damage in an attack against the reactors.
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The nuclear facility outside Dimona in the northern Negev. |
| Photo by: Reuters |
Nonetheless, in principle any defense system can be penetrated. For this reason, nuclear activity in the reactors will be halted should warnings come of impending war. This stoppage procedure could also be applied in non-war periods of escalated skirmishes that involve rocket attacks against Israel.
The official explanation for this policy is that activity at the reactors is carried out for research purposes, and such research work does not need to be carried out constantly, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The IDF and the IAEC, which is subordinate to the prime minister, are prepared for the possibility of an attempted attack on the reactors during a conflict with Iran, Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon or Hamas and other Palestinian organizations in the Gaza Strip.
Such attacks could be carried out using missiles, rockets, planes or drones. Workers at the reactors will continue to report for duty, but will be active in specially fortified installations and bunkers, as happens with workers employed at other infrastructure or security facilities.
Dimona is located within the range of surface-to-surface missiles possessed by Iran, Syria and Hezbollah. Rockets fired from Gaza in the direction of Ashdod-Gedera could land within the perimeter of the Nahal Sorek reactor. The Dimona reactor was attacked for the first time by Scud missiles fired from Iraq in January and February 1991. This could be seen as a belated response to the destruction of the Iraqi reactor by Israel Air Force F-16 planes in June 1981. The Iraqi missiles missed their target.
Since the establishment of the Dimona reactor at the start of the 1960s, Israel has been prepared to use planes and surface-to-air missiles to thwart reconnaissance flights and attempted attacks.
Egyptian, Soviet and even Western spy planes apparently attempted to photograph the Dimona reactor in the 1960s; but since then such flights have abated, as a result of satellite activity. Nonetheless, Israel enforces a strict ban on flights in air space around the reactor.
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If you ever saw Homer Simpson working at the Springfield reactor then you have an insight to likely conditions at Dimona. It will not need a direct hit to put it out of service.
(1) They consider Iranians and Iranian weapons to be inferior (2) They believe that they can call on their genie on a bottle (America) to grant any wish under duress. Taken together, these are reasons that Israelis will not take civil defense drills seriously and that Israel's military planners won't get overly workd up about adding another mickey mouse missile interceptor system like Iron Dome.
All weapons are tested and improved based on real world use. All of the variables included in an attack on Iran would reveal their effectiveness based on the results they attain. This includes the long range IAF mission, the Iranian defenses, the Iranian missile arsenal and the Israeli defenses. No matter how good or bad they are on paper their results may come as a surprise, good or bad. The IDF high command has not impressed with it's poor showing in the 2006 war and the handling of the Turkish flotilla. As with the Mossad Dubai op, Israeli operations tend to fail because of the over complexity and underestimating their opponents. If this happens in an attack on Iran we may see Israel threaten to nuke a major city once again as they did with Cairo in 1973.
The reason for the article was to make a determination of what class of people are reading them. You topped them all with your statement. You won! You now can play on the show 'are you smarter than a 5th grader'.
How many times per minute? It's completely safe....out in the open....anti-missiles missiles...like Iron Dome....you're joking.....yes? Got news for you buddy....don't start another war....especially with Iran. Salaam/Shalom
A very good job on this steps of stoppage,the defense system will be very effective to stop any missile attack,I do not fore see any damage,Christ is watching out for Y'all also
Israel's enemies ask but they really don't want to know what's in store for them at Dimona if they persist and provoke the Jewish State by crossing her red lines of survival.
Tough talk from someone who hides in the comforts of Seattle. You don't scare anyone. The precise coordinates of Dimona are well known. I wonder if the defense system around Dimona can intercept 450 Shahab missiles coming at it at the same time.
the Patriot (PAC) system, they managed to hit some scuds launched by Sadam against Israel. This was then and now I am sure these anti missile systems would have been upgraded and we don't know for sure.
Israel's enemies ask but they really don't want to know what's in store for them at Dimona if they persist and provoke the Jewish State by crossing her red lines of survival.
Too convoluted an undertaking ..by far
You are in grave danger if radiation leaks AGAIN from Dimona. Did you know jewish women have thyroid cancer at far higher rates than any other people in the world? Your government has been poisoning you with radiation from Dimona for years.
The neighborhood bully, Iran is coming at you. No America protection because America know Iran can kick their ass as well. Dimona will be on Fire. Iran is the World power today, middle East Superpower
Keep on dreaming mate
When all is said and done and the IDF jet are back to their base, you and fellow iranianics will still be wondering what happened, just like syria in '07, iraq in '81.
Well, well, well. This remind me Nasralla, who is hiding under a rock for the past 4 years, Sadam who is smelling the roots, Kaddafi who is looking from above and many other like them. THE BIG and TOUGH Iran. just look at the pictures they send to the world tough commando with 1970 Uzi guns and 1960 jets. Israel will smash them like cockroaches
israel seems to think they have the right to bomb any state but no one is allowed to counter attack them, or even attack.