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Israel’s Nuclear Submarines
Stephen Lendman
Israel is thermonuclear armed and dangerous. Its arsenal likely includes 200 or more warheads, its delivery systems able to strike far distant targets.
It operates five Dolphin-class, nuclear-capable submarines, its newest just added to its fleet - “a formidable war machine, the most advanced, complex and most expensive” military hardware Israel possesses, according to President Reuven Rivlin.
Germany is Israel’s supplier, the first three vessels commissioned in 1999 and 2000, the fourth and fifth ones agreed to in 2006.
They have a maximum speed of 20 knots, a range of 4,500 km. New boats are equipped with 650mm torpedo tubes, capable of launching thermonuclear-armed cruise missiles.
German officials acknowledge Israel’s intention to have a nuclear-capable submarine fleet, able to strike targets anywhere in the region and beyond - boats designed and built to its specifications.
In June 2012, Der Spiegel headlined “Operation Sampson: Israel’s Deployment of Nuclear Missiles on Subs from Germany,” saying:
Vessels represent “precision engineering made in Germany…suitable for equipping with nuclear weapons.”
“Deep in their interiors, on decks 2 and 3, the submarines contain a secret” known to few Israeli insiders: “nuclear warheads, small enough to be mounted on a cruise missile…explosive enough to execute a nuclear strike” - capable of causing vast destruction.
Anyone publicly admitting Israel’s secret program risks “lengthy prison term(s).” Spiegel minced no words, saying with Germany’s help, Israel “creat(ed) a floating nuclear weapon(s) arsenal” - a global menace by any standard.
It asked if Berlin was “recklessly promoting an arms race in the Middle East” - Israel’s war machine enhanced with its fifth Dolphin-class nuclear capable submarine, a sixth one contracted to be built ahead, perhaps more to follow.
Germany’s Howaldswerke-Deutsche Werft shipbuilding company is Israel’s supplier, its newest submarine requiring 18 months longer to complete before becoming fully operational.
Its fuel-cell operating air-independent propulsion system permits underwater operations for weeks at a time without surfacing.
The INS Rahav (Hebrew for Neptune, the Greek god of the sea) reportedly cost $2 billion - offset by Berlin assuming some of the cost.
Israel considers nuclear capable submarines a key part of its defense. Its only enemies are ones it invents - a rogue state threatening world peace, partnered with its US paymaster.
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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks World War III
http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html
Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.
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