Quote from pspr:
Quit being such an ass.
Israel is currently believed to possess between 75 and 400 nuclear warheads with the ability to deliver them by intercontinental ballistic missile, aircraft, and submarine.[2]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapons_and_Israel
Quote from Trader666:
That's not how it will happen. Iran will hand one off or claim they "lost control" so they have plausible deniability.
Quote from RCG Trader:
Lots of good Germans died when the Allies laid Berlin to waste. The people, like it or not, ARE responsible for their leaders. But Mahmoud is a smart guy. What good is an irradiated Iran? I also wonder how nuclear strikes will affect the oil.
If Iran has to go, a Neutron weapon makes more sense. But I think only we and the Russians have those.
Quote from RCG Trader:
Also as far as a terrorist nuclear threat, we already have that. Russia lost a boatload of tactical nukes during it's meltdown. No one knows where they are.
Quote from CoolTraderDude:
Apparently, they don't have intelligence where you come from...!
You didn't read the article did you...? Dolphins (submarines) aren't capable of firing off those big missiles with long ranges... The submarines themselves don't have the endurance to get close enough to fire off nuke missiles if they were modified to fire those missiles in the first place...
Dolphin Class
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolphin_class_submarine
Israel's current navy consists of 3 Corvettes... Obviously, not capable of doing what you suggest.
The "Jerichos" ICBM missiles or whatever... may or may not exist...
Israel does have the capability to deliver small tactical nukes from aircraft but that's about it. They don't have any heavy bombers with penetrating capability or lift required to do what all the loons are suggesting.
Quote from RCG Trader:
Lots of good Germans died when the Allies laid Berlin to waste. The people, like it or not, ARE responsible for their leaders. But Mahmoud is a smart guy. What good is an irradiated Iran? I also wonder how nuclear strikes will affect the oil.
If Iran has to go, a Neutron weapon makes more sense. But I think only we and the Russians have those.
Quote from RCG Trader:
Also as far as a terrorist nuclear threat, we already have that. Russia lost a boatload of tactical nukes during it's meltdown. No one knows where they are.
Quote from tomdavis:
Israel has hundreds of nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles with a 2,500 mile range and cruise missiles with over a 1,000 mile range. The Israeli air force can deliver nuclear weapons to the Iranian capital just by getting within one thousand miles of Tehran and releasing cruise missiles.
Israel doesn't need heavy bombers nor do they need to be in close proximity to their targets. Many of their nuclear weapons are designed to be delivered by cruise missiles that can be launched from ships or aircraft. They have a new cruise missile that can launch from a submarine and travel 900 miles to its target. That particular model is a modified US missile. They have also developed their own nuclear-capable cruise missile that can be launched from a torpedo tube and travel almost 1000 miles.
http://www.worldnewstribune.com/201...ed-u-s-cruise-missiles-with-nuclear-warheads/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/oct/12/israel1
The newer version of the Israeli Popeye missile (heavy cruise variant) is also capable of tube-launching heavy nuclear weapons and hitting targets over 900 miles away.
If you have an interest in these things, I'd suggest you subscribe to Jane's Defense Weekly.
http://www.janes-defence-weekly.com/?T=1328628030&JTID=205172555&OGID=196&network=GAW
Operational range in excess of 67 nmi (124 km) depending on launch platform
Quote from Trader666:
My point was that assuming they'd attack directly and openly is bogus. Also, the point of retaliation would be severe punishment so forget the neutron bomb (which we don't have any more and I doubt Israel has).
Quote from Trader666:
First of all, these are difficult enough to set off even if you have the codes and almost impossible if you don't. Second, they require regular maintenance because the nuclear material severely degrades the parts and mechanisms. So at most these could be dismantled and used in "dirty bombs."