Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu – secret plan to bomb Iran’s nuclear plant?
Nuclear hit ‘Israel’s best plan for Iran’ THE AUSTRALIAN, from The Times November 12, 2012 “………..”Israel’s plans have been constantly evolving in recent years according to the progress Iran is making,” a senior defence source said. “A decade ago when Ariel Sharon (the former prime minister who suffered a stroke in 2006) was in charge, it was relatively easy to strike Iran as its air defences were almost non-existent. Now they’ve upgraded and our tactics have to change.”
Western sources believe a single Israeli Jericho-3 missile could carry a tactical nuclear warhead with a yield of less than one kiloton, which would be sufficient to “bury” the plant.
In a conventional attack Israel might, according to experts, lose up to 20 per cent of its planes.
Well aware of the hostile international response to even the suggestion of a nuclear attack, the option is not being debated publicly. But last week it was referred to indirectly by Shaul Mofaz, head of the Kadima party and leader of the opposition.
For some time Mr Mofaz, 64, a former defence minister and one of the few Israeli politicians privy to the country’s nuclear secrets, has believed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is playing a dangerous game.
Mr Mofaz shocked many Israelis last week when during a press conference he unveiled a poster showing a red mushroom cloud with the slogan: “Bibi will endanger Israel.”
Most Israelis assumed the poster referred to the Iranian threat. But its message may have been more subtle, hinting at an argument that Mr Mofaz cannot articulate in public: that he believes Mr Netanyahu could be considering a nuclear option. ….
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/nuclear-hit-israels-best-plan-for-iran/story-fnb64oi6-1226514682563
USA nuclear veterans exposed to radiation
All personnel also wore film badges for detecting radiation levels. I never heard results of the radiation levels we were exposed to.
Although a little more than 900 of the tests were below ground, more than 200 resulted in the atmospheric dispersion of ionizing radiation particles, and there were more than 450,000 military personnel and 45,000 civilian scientists who witnessed and participated in these
nuclear event activities.
At present I serve as Washington state commander of the National Association of Atomic Veterans. There are approximately 50 of us in Washington. I help anyone filling claims to Veterans Affairs for health effects caused by exposure to airborne radiation. Many have suffered known cancers associated with exposure.
Monitored radiation from underwater a-bomb test in 1955
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2012/11/11/2756906/monitored-radiation-from-underwater.html November 11, 2012 By PETE BESAS — I served in the U.S. Navy Air Force during the Korean War as an aviation electronics technician. In May 1955 I took part in atomic testing. “Operation Wigwam” was the world’s only deep-water atomic bomb detonation. Continue reading
Germany supplying Israel’s “floating nuclear arsenal”
Rising To The Surface: Germany?s Hushed Shipments Of Nuclear-Capable Submarines To Israel ANALYSIS A new report is raising important questions about Germany’s commitment to Israel’s defense capabilities.International Business Times, BY Jacey Fortin | June 06 2012
German magazine Der Spiegel published an investigative article in and online on Monday, arguing that German officials were aware that the submarines they have supplied to Israel over the past several years are capable of launching nuclear warheads.
Research Spiegel has conducted in Germany, Israel and the United States, among current and past government ministers, military officials, defense engineers and intelligence agents, no longer leaves any room for doubt: With the help of German maritime technology, Israel has managed to create for itself a floating nuclear weapon arsenal: submarines equipped with nuclear capability, said the article.
Officially, Israel does not admit to having nuclear weapons in the first place. Also officially, the German government denies any knowledge of Israel’s nuclear capabilities or intentions. Continue reading
Britain’s ultimate phallic symbol – useless, expensive Trident nuclear missile
many defence experts now argue that a replacement deterrent is something that the UK neither needs nor can afford
the role of Britain’s nuclear deterrent is linked to the political and military establishment’s perception of the country’s place at the world’s top table “more a matter of national virility than national security”
UK nuclear deterrent plan triggers divisions Announcement of an extra $565m for improved nuclear weapons capacity worries critics in an era of austerity. Aljazeera, Simon Hooper 06 Nov 2012 London, UK – At an unknown location somewhere deep beneath the world’s oceans, a British submarine sits primed to launch up to 40 nuclear warheads with a collective destructive power almost 300 times greater than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.
Since the late 1960s Britain’s nuclear deterrent strategy has required that at least one of the Royal Navy’s four-strong fleet of Vanguard submarines be operational and fully armed at all times, providing, according to the navy’s website, a “round-the-clock insurance policy”.
Only a British prime minister has the authority to order a nuclear attack. But, in the event that a submarine commander loses radio contact and suspects his homeland has been wiped off the map, orders contained in an onboard safe reputedly offer a choice to either “let them have it”or “sail to New Zealand if it’s still there”, according to documents unearthed by Peter Hennessy, a veteran historian of British state secrets. Continue reading
The nightmare of the Marshall Islands nuclear bomb tests
PARADISE WITH AN ASTERISK, OUTSIDE MAGAZINE, OCTOBER 17, 2012 Bikini Atoll, a tiny ring of islands halfway between Hawaii and Australia, is a world-class diving destination and home to one of the Pacific’s last great fishing grounds. So where are all the tourists? Welcome to heaven on earth, where the vestiges of hell lie just below the surface. Continue reading
The biggest experiment in history – atomic bombing of Bikini Atoll
Bikini Atoll became the centerpiece of a colossal military operation.
The hydrogen bomb that was detonated on this spot on March 1, 1954, created a fireball four miles wide and raised the temperature of the lagoon water to 99,000 degrees. The blast was 1,000 times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb and nearly three times stronger than its creators expected. It shook islands 250 miles away. It vaporized three islands in the atoll. And it killed every living thing in the air, on land, and in the sea for miles around.
PARADISE WITH AN ASTERISK, OUTSIDE MAGAZINE, OCTOBER 17, 2012“……..Operation Crossroads, the most spectacular and expensive science experiment in history, was first proposed in August 1945, a few weeks after the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. President Harry Truman had ordered the Army and Navy to conduct further tests of nuclear weapons. The reason, which sounds implausible if not ridiculous today, was to see if atomic bombs, when dropped on warships at sea, would sink them. Continue reading
USA’s B61 bombs becoming even more astronomically expensive
Billions more needed to refurbish B61 nuclear bombs, Stars and Stripes By JOHN FLECK Albuquerque Journal, N.M. November 4, 2012 Technicians at the Pantex Plant in Texas, where nuclear bombs are disassembled for testing, prepare to start the evaluation process on a B61 nuclear bomb, the oldest in the arsenal. The B61 is about to undergo a major overhaul that the Pentagon estimates will cost up to $10 billion, or $25 million per bomb.
NATIONAL NUCLEAR SECURITY ADMINISTRATION The National Nuclear Security Administration, already under fire for billions of dollars of cost overruns, has underestimated by billions more how much it will cost to refurbish the nation’s stockpile of B61 nuclear bombs, according to an independent cost assessment commissioned by the agency. Continue reading
Underwater nuclear bomb tests – causing environmental damage?
How safe are underwater nuclear tests? http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20121105141816 , November 05, 2012 Khadijah Bawazeer I do not have a sure answer for this question. While watching the news about Hurricane Sandy, a friend of mine who is a news-addict suggested that the increasing number of major environmental crises all over the world might be the aftermath of underwater nuclear testing. The argument is plausible because, although this might not be the sole reason, it seems that the more that underwater nuclear testing occurs, the more tsunamis, hurricanes and floods there are all around the world.
Many if not all countries test nuclear energy underground because this type of testing is a lot more convenient. Such experiments can take place deep in the ocean far away from inhabited land. As a result there are few liability issues because the tests are conducted out of sight in international water and it is easy to deny that they ever took place. Also these experiments usually happen in relative secrecy with only specialists aware of them. Continue reading
Pakistan’s nuclear arms race
Pakistan’s hot nuclear greenhouse, THE HINDU PRAVEEN SWAMI, 4 Nov 12, The world’s fastest growing arsenal is being produced not just because of the fear of India but a strategic paranoia exacerbated by existential anxieties…… ‘CIVILISATIONAL’
DIFFERENCE Continue reading
Luck saved world from nuclear holocaust, in Cuban crisis
While Kennedy and Khrushchev’s restraint helped avert disaster, luck played an equally significant role. In one of the most dangerous moments of the crisis, a Soviet captain almost fired his submarine’s nuclear-tipped torpedo at a U.S. warship. However, authorization to fire was denied by one of the officers on board.
A nuclear nightmare The Hill, By Kingston Reif, Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation – 10/31/12 “.….. the 50th anniversary of one of the most terrifying real-life horror stories of all time: The Cuban Missile Crisis. Continue reading
UK would not take part in illegal pre-emptive strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities
Britain views pre-emptive strike on Iran nuclear facilities as illegal Telegraph UK, 26 Oct 12 Britain views a pre-emptive strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities as illegal under present circumstances and would not allow UK military bases to be used for this purpose, according to reports.
The Foreign Office declined to comment on suggestions that British ministers have been advised that a strike on Iran would breach international law because no imminent threat currently exists.
If the US were to attack Iran’s nuclear plants, it could request permission to use the RAF base at Akrotiri in Cyprus and the American military facilities located on the British territory of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. However, The Guardian reports that the Britain would reject any such request under present conditions…..
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/9636134/Britain-views-pre-emptive-strike-on-Iran-nuclear-facilities-as-illegal.html
Israel’s secrecy on its nuclear weapons is getting ridiculous
Netanyahu’s ‘Crazy’ Talk Seen Threatening Israel’s Nuclear Ambiguity International Herald Tribune, By HARVEY MORRIS, OCTOBER 25, 2012, LONDON — Israel will face mounting pressure to acknowledge the existence of its nuclear weapons arsenal as an unintended consequence of its government’s belligerent stance towards Iran, according to a former Israeli intelligence chief.
Ami Ayalon, former head of the Shin Bet domestic security agency, says, “The world won’t let you have nuclear ambiguity if you act crazy.” In an interview with Rendezvous during a visit to London, Mr. Ayalon said Israel’s special status was at risk as a result of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s threats of military action against Iran’s nuclear plants if sanctions failed to persuade Tehran to abandon its alleged ambition to build a bomb.
Mr. Ayalon is among a number of serving and former defense and intelligence chiefs who have challenged the wisdom of threatening Iran with a unilateral strike.
His latest warning came as Finland prepared to host an international conference soon to debate turning the Middle East into a nuclear weapons-free region. The Israeli government has said it is against such a meeting, at which the issue of Israel’s own unacknowledged nuclear arsenal is certain to be raised.
“Mr. Netanyahu has been playing the role of irresponsible player in the region,” with his threats against Iran, according to Mr. Ayalon. “That raises the questions: Does he mean it? And what is the price?”…. http://rendezvous.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/25/netanyahus-crazy-talk-seen-threatening-israels-nuclear-ambiguity/
Urgent need for Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty to become law
Nuclear test ban body’s new head to seek compliance of key powers Oct 23, 2012 By Fredrik Dahl VIENNA (Reuters) – A 183-nation body set up to monitor a ban on nuclear bomb tests elected a new head on Tuesday to face the tricky task of helping convince the United States and other hold-outs to finally turn the landmark treaty into global law. Continue reading
Senseless Cold War nuclear arsenal – obsolete system
We have a Cold War nuclear arsenal built to defend us from “Mad Men”-era threats. But those threats, like the three-martini lunch, are a thing of the past. And the over half a trillion dollars we’re goingto spend on maintaining that bloated arsenal over the next decade will be a half trillion less we can spend on the training and equipment our
troops need to face 21st-century threats.
Blunt: Costs of U.S. nuclear posture senseless Online Athens By ROGER R. BLUNT, October 22, 2012 Fifty years ago the biggest event in human history almost happened. During a fateful 13-day period in October 1962, the Soviet Union and the United States balanced at the brink of nuclear war as the Soviets attempted to establish nuclear bases in Cuba. Continue reading
Independent Scotland would demand removal of Trident nuclear base
Nuclear weapons ‘outlawed’ in an independent Scotland, says Salmond, BBC News 21 Oct 12, The leader of the SNP has said that if his party won power in an independent government it would make nuclear weapons illegal.
Alex Salmond told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show that Trident, which currently resides at Faslane Naval base on the Clyde, would have to go.
He also said a go-alone Scotland would remain a member of the European Union….. He said: “The UK government has two choices – they either relocate Trident to another part of the rest of the UK or alternatively they could use nuclear facilities in America or France.”
Mr Salmond made a further point that it was possible for a UK government to decide a “much better policy” and decommission its weapons system….. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-20020839
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Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon
Say No to NASA’s Reckless Nuclear Reactor on the Moon
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