Iraq will attack Israel if US threatens Saddam: Israeli intelligence

AFP (Jerusalem, October 16)

Iraq will strike Israel if the United States threatens Saddam Hussein, head of Israeli intelligence General Amos Malkha said Tuesday.

The Iraqi president "will attack Israel if he feels the United States is threatening his control of Iraq," Malkha told the parliamentary foreign and defence committee, Israeli television reported.

The statement follows growing Israeli expectations of a US attack on the Arab country, but Washington has promised to warn Israel before any such action.

The United States plans to expand its war on terror beyond Afghanistan and is closely monitoring Iraq, US National Security Adviser Condoleeza Rice said Tuesday.

The United States was "worried" by Saddam's attempts to reconstitute his mass destruction weapons capability, Rice said in an interview with Qatar's Al-Jazeera television.

"There is no doubt that Iraq is in the sights of the United States and sooner or later the Americans will take this country on, but for the moment we are in the dark and we have to wait," Israeli Deputy Defence Minister Dalia Rabin-Pelossof said last week.

Washington has warned Iraq not to exploit the crisis over Afghanistan and threaten its neighbours or ethnic minorities with weapons of mass destruction.

Israeli Defence Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer also said last week the country was ready should the United States broaden its attacks against the perpetrators of the September 11 terror strikes to include Iraq.

"We do not take any risks and we have taken into account the possibility that the war will spread to Iraq, and this time we are well prepared because we have drawn all the right conclusions," Ben Eliezer said.

He was referring to the 1991 Gulf War over Kuwait when Iraq fired 39 Scud missiles at Israeli territory, killing two and leaving dozens injured as hundreds of houses were damaged in the Tel Aviv region.

Under intense pressure from the United States, which led a coalition including Arab states in evicting Iraqi occupation forces from Kuwait, Israel refrained from retaliating to the strikes.

-- Anonymous, October 16, 2001

Answers

Does anyone really believe that Israel would once again remain 'silent' if dozens of Iraqi missiles landed?...particularly if some were NBC tipped?

Can anyone imagine what the US reaction would be if a single Iraqi missile landed on NYC?

-- Anonymous, October 17, 2001

One would hope we would know for sure from the start where the missile came from, although I suppose satellitte surveillance could probably confirm that for us.

The situation reminds me somehow of JFK's approach to the Cuban missile crisis. He didn't tell Cuba to blow off so much as he told Russia, and somehow got their attention as a result.

-- Anonymous, October 17, 2001

Ben Eliezer says they are ready, so I wouldn't expect them to stay out of any conflict with Iraq. Especially if they were hit by a missile or three...

-- Anonymous, October 17, 2001

Good. (you may think I'm crazy)

The thing for the US to do is....

Not threaten Saddam. If the determination is made to 'deal' with him, as Nike says.... Just Do It!

No threats, nothing. Just strike with such a force that Saddam will be unable to attack Israel. Simple.

Parking lots are easy to make, but I hope it doesn't come to that.

Now.... the $10.00 question is.........

What would the US do if it turned out the weapons grade anthrax that was let out in DC proved to come from Iraq?

-- Anonymous, October 17, 2001