Tuesday 17 April 2012

Israel prepares for war

This is obviously how things look in Israel. They're obviously still talking war.

Israeli Pilot: 'We Are Prepared For Iran If Given The Order'
Lt.Col. Gilad: 'We Are Always Ready For Some Big Mission - That Is Our State Of Preparedness'

'Some Pilots Might Not Return But We Have Trained To Carry Out Mission Successfully & In Shortest PossibleTime '

'In An Absurd Way Things Could Be Simpler For Pilots On Iranian Mission Than Back In Israel Which Will Come Under Rocket Fire


16 April, 2012

While pundits can continue pontificating, the Israeli public got a first hand view of the Israeli pilots who, if given the order, will take off on the most hazardous mission in the state's history. Channel 10 TV was given a rare opportunity recently to visit a base of the Israel Air Force, where preparations are continuing for a possible air strike on Iran's nuclear installations. Military correspondent Alon Ben David was also permitted to interview some of the squadron commanders about such a mission. His report left no doubt the IAF is ready to attack Iran's nuclear weapons sites, if Israel's political leadership decides that time's up and U.S. President Barack Obama has failed to halt Iran's drive to produce nuclear weapons.

While the Western powers conduct negotiations with Iran on halting its nuclear program, the Israel Air Force continues its preparation for a possible attack on Iran's nuclear installations.A commander of an F-15 sqaudron said: ' In the reality of modern warfare any idea or the idea of a perfect total Israeli operation without losses is very naive'.

The IAF is not turning off its aircraft engines in the wake of the renewed nuclear negotiations in Istanbul - its years of planning and training may now go operational, if the order is given. Zero hour is drawing near. If the negotiations break down or if Iran transfers its nuclear activity to the Fordow underground facility near Qom, the pilots may get the order to take off on the long flight to Tehran.

Lt.Col. Gilad, commander of an F-15 squadron said; " I'll tell you what's great about the pilots' world is that we have no such dilemmas, we are always prepared for some big mission, this is our state of readiness'.

The F-15s started arriving in Israel thirty-six years ago, the year Gilad was born, and since then have undergone an internal and external face-lift. And this veteran aircraft has emerged as the best plane for a long range attack mission. It has a very long range of activity with a combination of relatively good fuel economy and the power to carry significant quantities of fuel and weaponry'. When asked if he had trained for long flights the pilot replied: 'I have had flights of several hours in its cockpick and tested it thoroughly'.

In scenarios published in recent weeks, it appears that tens of aircraft maybe more, including attack, interceptors, fuel tankers, electronic warfare planes and rescue helicopters would participate. These scenarios cannot foresee how the IAF pilots will perform, some of whom may not return from the mission. The last time Israeli pilots were involved in aerial combat was over thirty years ago when they raqcked up a 100-0 record against Syrian aircraft and anti- aircraft defenses. This would the first time, for the new generation of IAF pilots would be involved in such a confrontation. The IAF is also concerned about anti-aircraft systems that Russia has sold Iran and Syria. Those SA-22 and SA-17 anti- aircraft defenses pose a challenge to the IAF.

Lt.Col. Gilad said: ' Apparently the test will come the day the order is given. Whoever reads modern aerial warfare is aware that combattants, who were first rate in training, did not always deliver when under fire'. The IAF's pilotless drones with electronic warfare capabilities would join the pilots on the operation. The 'Eitan' is equipped with the IAF's most advanced platforms, would be part of the effort to cope with the new threats the IAF would face in the region. Lt.Col. Shai, commander of the Eitan squadron said: 'If required the Eitan can fullfil all its missions on the day the order is given.'

Summing up, Lt.Col. Gilad said: 'All the pilots are volunteers and we are not the ones who will make the decision. I find it hard to imagine the first day of total war here (at his base). We pilots will no longer enjoy the priviledge of the 'warm and protected club' when we return between sorties. In an absurd way, it may be that things for us will be simpler at the front than back home at our bases. They, like every other place in Israel, are likely to come under rocket fire and our families will have to be evacuated. However we have trained to successfully crry out this mission professionally and in the shortest possible time'.

Alon Ben David concluded his report by saying: 'It was unlikely that Israel would strike before the next round in Baghdad in May, but this coming summer may be hotter and tenser than ever.





Already, U.S. and Israel’s Netanyahu are at odds over progress at Iran nuke talks
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Just two days after representatives of the United States and other key world powers met in Istanbul with Iran to discuss its nuclear program, Israel is throwing cold water on the effort, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu charging that Iran was being given a “freebie.”


16 April, 2012

Both U.S. and Iranian leaders expressed satisfaction with the initial meeting Saturday of talks between Iran and the P5+1 _ the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany. Both sides saw the agreement to meet again May 23 in Baghdad as a step forward after more than a year of no talks.

But Netanyahu was unimpressed. "My initial impression is that Iran has been given a freebie," Netanyahu said. "It has got five weeks to continue enrichment without any limitation, any inhibition."

President Barack Obama had defended the talks in comments to reporters Sunday in Cartagena, Colombia, where he was meeting with heads of state from Latin America. He called the talks “an opportunity for us to negotiate and see if Iran comes to the table in good faith."

The notion that somehow we’ve given something away ... would indicate that Iran has gotten something,” Obama said. “In fact, they’ve got some of the toughest sanctions that they’re going to be facing coming up in just a few months if they don’t take advantage of these talks. I hope they do."

Officials in Jerusalem, however, remained pessimistic over the talks, saying that the U.S. and world leaders were giving Iran the one thing they needed to develop a nuclear weapon _ time.

History teaches us that so far, Iran has always used ‘talks’ to buy time, and in that time they have moved their nuclear weapons program forward,” said Eitan Livne, director of Iran Research for the Israel Project advocacy group. “The Iranians have proven to be experts in this maneuver.”

Livne said that Israeli officials feel vindicated by a report released in November by the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog, that found that Iran had a program to develop nuclear weapons until 2003 and that some parts of that program might still survive. The report, however, said the IAEA had been unable to determine if Iran was pursuing nuclear weapons now.

Israel feels that it is clear in the eyes of the world, especially after the U.N. report, that Iran’s intentions are dangerous and that this is a military nuclear program. Iran has already postponed, in a very effective way, all past attempt to negotiate with them. That is why Israel currently feels so pessimistic,” Livne said.

A senior Israeli official, interviewed by the Hebrew-language daily Maariv, was quoted as saying that Israel’s government had held different expectations for the talks in Istanbul.

In contrast with the understanding we reached, we were surprised that the Iranians were given five more weeks to continue enriching uranium without interruption. This was not at all our expectation from the talks,” the paper reported the official as saying. The official was not named.

A statement from Netanyahu’s office said that the Israeli premier found the results of the talks unacceptable _ arguing that Iran must immediately stop all uranium enrichment, remove enriched material from the country, and dismantle the nuclear facility in Qom.

Israel’s expectations were unrealistic, said Professor David Menashri, director of the Center for Iranian Studies at Tel Aviv University.

I can understand that Israel is not happy with the talks so far, but that is because their expectation was that Iran would be given a simple choice to say yes or no,” Menashri said. “Israel would have preferred a harsher policy towards Iran _ but that is always their position.”

Israeli officials, Menashri said, were making a mistake in openly criticizing the talks so quickly.

I had hoped that our politicians would shut their mouths on the issue of Iran and let the international community handle it for a change,” he said. “Israel should not clash with the U.S., and they should give the talks some time before declaring them a failure.”

He criticized the saber-rattling that he said was all too common in the Israeli press.

Over the weekend, Israel’s Channel Ten news program featured a lengthy report on Israel’s air force gearing up for an attack on Iran this summer.

The report, which featured senior military reporter Alon Ben-David, was arranged and approved by the Israeli military’s press office. It was also given clearance by Israel’s military censor.

"Dozens if not more planes” will take part in the mission: attack and escort jets, tankers for mid-air refueling, electronic warfare planes and rescue helicopters, the report said.

While no strike is likely to occur before the P5+1 talks with Iran resume in May, Ben-David said that the "coming summer will not only be hot but tense.”

Years of preparations are likely to come to realization,” he said, adding that “the moment of truth is near.”

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