Israel is likely eyeing Iran’s nuclear facilities as it determines its response to Tehran’s missile attack, according to Malcolm Davis, senior analyst for defense strategy at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.
Iran’s breakout time – the time needed to produce enough weapons-grade material for a nuclear weapon – is now at about one or two weeks, the United States has assessed.
“From Israel’s perspective, it cannot allow Iran to get nuclear weapons. There would certainly be strong pressure within Netanyahu’s cabinet to attack those nuclear facilities and essentially set back the Iranian nuclear weapons program, potentially for years,” Davis told CNN’s Becky Anderson.
Israel could target Iran’s nuclear facilities with a traditional military attack or a cyberattack more akin to what it used against Hezbollah’s pagers and walkie-talkies, intercepting the supply chain and adding explosives to the devices, Davis said.
“Whatever Israel does do, it has to be highly visible and it has to be seen to be decisive and successful.”
Tehran, meanwhile, is likely hoping “there will be some restraint,” said Salam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House.
Israel has made it clear it will do “whatever it can” to address its Iran security problem, which has required it to “take out as much of the command and control of the ‘Axis of Resistance’ — from Hamas to Hezbollah to targeting Iranian facilities in Syria,” Vakil told CNN’s Anderson.
“Iran is trying to throw down some red lines, knowing full well that it is in a defensive position, that Hezbollah is compromised, and that it doesn’t have the traditional conventional capabilities to fight Israel.”
CNN
