Not only do the mainstream media not mention that Israel has nuclear weapons but also: i) the media almost never point out that the attack is a gross violation of international law and ought to be condemned globally ii) that the "intelligence" quoted in articles is all by anonymous sources and even if it is eventually officially acknowledged might just as well be part of Israeli-US psy-ops.
Cheers, Ken Hanly --- Jim Devine <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > from SLATE: > >The New York Times leads with news from unnamed > officials that the > target of Israel's recent attack on Syria was a > partially constructed > nuclear reactor. ... The NYT's sources say Israel's > September > airstrike into Syria targeted the beginnings of a > nuclear reactor > based on a design from North Korea. There was little > disagreement > within the administration about the intelligence > information itself, > but there were fierce arguments last summer as to > whether or not the > Israeli strike would be "premature." While we do not > know how far > along the reactor was, it could not have been > advanced enough to > threaten Israel directlyIsrael's attack was instead > designed to put > Iran on notice. > > > North Korea's role in the incident is unknown, but > the Cheney faction in the administration has seized > on the incident in an attempt to scuttle the North > Korea denuclearization deal. It looks like [the] > Bush [faction] isn't playing along.< > > me: >>>>> as per usual, no comment is made about the > fact that Israel > has nukes itself (except toward the bottom), bombs > its neighbors > indiscriminately, pays for it all party with US > taxpayer dollars, etc. > <<<<< > > The New York Times / October 14, 2007 > > Analysts Find Israel Struck a Nuclear Project Inside > Syria > By DAVID E. SANGER and MARK MAZZETTI > > WASHINGTON, Oct. 13 Israel's air attack on Syria > last month was > directed against a site that Israeli and American > intelligence > analysts judged was a partly constructed nuclear > reactor, apparently > modeled on one North Korea has used to create its > stockpile of nuclear > weapons fuel, according to American and foreign > officials with access > to the intelligence reports. > > The description of the target addresses one of the > central mysteries > surrounding the Sept. 6 attack, and suggests that > Israel carried out > the raid to demonstrate its determination to snuff > out even a nascent > nuclear project in a neighboring state. The Bush > administration was > divided at the time about the wisdom of Israel's > strike, American > officials said, and some senior policy makers still > regard the attack > as premature. > > The attack on the reactor project has echoes of an > Israeli raid more > than a quarter century ago, in 1981, when Israel > destroyed the Osirak > nuclear reactor in Iraq shortly before it was to > have begun operating. > That attack was officially condemned by the Reagan > administration [in > contrast to the Bushwhackers' attitude toward the > current Israeli > aggression], though Israelis consider it among their > military's finest > moments. In the weeks before the Iraq war, Bush > administration > officials said they believed that the attack set > back Iraq's nuclear > ambitions by many years. > > By contrast, the facility that the Israelis struck > in Syria appears to > have been much further from completion, the American > and foreign > officials said. They said it would have been years > before the Syrians > could have used the reactor to produce the spent > nuclear fuel that > could, through a series of additional steps, be > reprocessed into > bomb-grade plutonium. > > Many details remain unclear, most notably how much > progress the > Syrians had made in construction before the Israelis > struck, the role > of any assistance provided by North Korea, and > whether the Syrians > could make a plausible case that the reactor was > intended to produce > electricity. In Washington and Israel, information > about the raid has > been wrapped in extraordinary secrecy and restricted > to just a handful > of officials, while the Israeli press has been > prohibited from > publishing information about the attack. > > The New York Times reported this week that a debate > had begun within > the Bush administration about whether the > information secretly cited > by Israel to justify its attack should be > interpreted by the United > States as reason to toughen its approach to Syria > and North Korea. In > later interviews, officials made clear that the > disagreements within > the administration began this summer, as a debate > about whether an > Israeli attack on the incomplete reactor was > warranted then. > > The officials did not say that the administration > had ultimately > opposed the Israeli strike, but that Secretary of > State Condoleezza > Rice and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates were > particularly concerned > about the ramifications of a pre-emptive strike in > the absence of an > urgent threat. > > "There wasn't a lot of debate about the evidence," > said one American > official familiar with the intense discussions over > the summer between > Washington and the government of Prime Minister Ehud > Olmert of Israel. > "There was a lot of debate about how to respond to > it." > > Even though it has signed the Nuclear > Nonproliferation Treaty, Syria > would not have been obligated to declare the > existence of a reactor > during the early phases of construction. It would > have also had the > legal right to complete construction of the reactor, > as long as its > purpose was to generate electricity. > > In his only public comment on the raid, Syria's > president, Bashar > al-Assad, acknowledged this month that Israeli jets > dropped bombs on a > building that he said was "related to the military" > but which he > insisted was "not used." > > A senior Israeli official, while declining to speak > about the specific > nature of the target, said the strike was intended > to "re-establish > the credibility of our deterrent power," signaling > that Israel meant > to send a message to the Syrians that even the > potential for a nuclear > weapons program would not be permitted. But several > American officials > said the strike may also have been intended by > Israel as a signal to > Iran and its nuclear aspirations. Neither Iran nor > any Arab government > except for Syria has criticized the Israeli raid, > suggesting that > Israel is not the only country that would be > disturbed by a nuclear > Syria. North Korea did issue a protest. > > [perhaps Israel is trying to regain its "street > cred" after its failed > effort to smash Hezbollah (and its successful effort > to punish > Lebanon)? ] > > The target of the Israeli raid and the American > debate about the > Syrian project were described by government > officials and > nongovernment experts interviewed in recent weeks in > the United States > and the Middle East. All insisted on anonymity > because of rules that > === message truncated === Blog: http://kenthink7.blogspot.com/index.html Blog: http://kencan7.blogspot.com/index.html
