Israel Silent on Syrian Report It Entered Airspace

Israeli air strike on Syria shrouded in secrecy as speculation mounts about the target
Washington won't comment on reports that North Korea was helping Damascus build a nuclear weapon
SONIA VERMA

Special to The Globe and Mail

September 22, 2007

JERUSALEM -- It began as a mysterious mission into enemy land, but is quickly becoming Israel's worst kept secret.

When Syria announced two weeks ago that its forces had opened fire on an Israeli aircraft that had infiltrated its airspace and bombed its territory, some dismissed it as a far-fetched Syrian conspiracy theory.

Others feared it could lead to the start of all-out war between the two archenemies.

But over the past couple of weeks, in dribs and drabs, a theory has emerged: A North Korean ship had arrived in Syria carrying clandestine cargo destined for a facility near the Turkish border that was part of a nascent nuclear weapons program. North Korean nuclear experts were rumoured to be in Syria at the time, and Israel decided to attack.

The truth is, Israeli officials won't divulge the motive behind the Syrian operation. Most won't even acknowledge it happened, maintaining an unusual "wall of silence" in a country where such secrets often seep out.

And a rare media blackout imposed by Israeli authorities on local journalists has prevented those best placed to find out the truth from reporting it. Any journalist who breaks the code of silence could face jail time.

The censorship means most accounts of what really happened the night of Sept. 6 come from unnamed sources, state news agencies and anonymous Internet blogs. This hasn't slowed speculation over exactly what did happen - the most contentious theory being the joint nuclear project.

Those reports are now raising tensions between the old rivals to dangerous new levels.

"This comes at a time when there is already a lot of fear about a war with Syria," said one Israeli military observer, who did not want to be named because of the media blackout.

"What we have now is a lot of conjecture and not a lot of facts. People are accusing Syria of many things. And if we're not careful those accusations could become self-fulfilling prophecies," the observer said.

After the air strike, Israel remained uncharacteristically silent, flatly denying its warplanes were even involved in an operation - until this week when Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's hawkish opposition leader, broke that silence with an apparent slip of the tongue.

Asked during a television interview to comment on "that operation that is so cloaked in secrecy," he said: "I was privy to the matter from the outset and I gave my backing. But it's too early to be discussing this."

His comments, however cryptic, were the first official admission that something in Syria was targeted. But rumours were already rife about what the air raid involved.

One guess was that the attack was a shot over the bow - meant to test the readiness of Syria's anti-missile defence capabilities. Another story holds that Israel targeted a conventional-weapons transfer to Hezbollah.

Yet another posits the attack was an assassination attempt on Khaled Meshaal, leader-in-exile of the militant Hamas movement.

"At the end of the day, each of those theories is as good as the next one. Those who know the truth think secrecy is the best way to handle the truth and we have to trust them," said Yaakov Amidror, former deputy chief of intelligence for the Israeli Army.

Most Israelis agree. According to polls, most say they feel safer since Sept. 6 and believe the operation was a success.

A week after the air strike, Israel's chief of military intelligence told the Knesset that Israel's "deterrence capabilities" had been restored.

He pointedly refused to comment about a specific mission in Syria, but his remarks were reassuring to the Israeli public, whose faith in their military was badly shaken by last year's failed war with Hezbollah in Lebanon.

"The public assumes something was done and accepts that it shouldn't be discussed for their own protection. They feel comforted knowing the army succeeded at something," said Uzi Arad, director of the Institute for Policy and Strategy at the Herzliya Interdisciplinary Centre and a former intelligence director for the Mossad, Israel's intelligence agency.

Others believe Israel's silence is strategic in other ways.

"The silence, for Israel is a very smart move. As long as they keep things quiet, the target can be whatever they want it to be," one local analyst said of Israel's relations with Syria.

Yesterday, Washington declined comment on reports the target of the Israeli raid was a nuclear facility built with a North Korean help.

"There are lots of things that we know about and learn about in this building that we don't share with you from this podium," White House spokesman Tony Fratto said.

Syria has denounced what it calls U.S. "lies" that it was receiving nuclear material from North Korea.

Pyongyang has denied helping Syria, insisting it is honouring an earlier pledge forbidding the transfer of nuclear material as part of a deal brokered in six-party talks in February that won the communist state diplomatic concessions.

Experts point out that it simply doesn't make sense that North Korea would jeopardize that agreement by shipping nuclear weapons to Syria.

But here in Israel, despite stubborn official silence -- the story refuses to die.

"There is a feeling the story will get out sooner or later," Mr. Arad said.

"It's not that people think the story will be buried forever, but these days the truth is a matter of time."

Strike force

Israel has more sophisticated military capabilities than any of its neighbours, able to strike targets thousands of kilometres away before its enemies can effectively react.

TALL AL ABYAD AL ATIQ, SYRIA

Agricultural research centre Israel may have bombed earlier this month, possibly suspecting Syria was using it as part of a nuclear weapons program.

OSIRAK, IRAQ

Nuclear materials testing reactor Israel destroyed in 1981, suspecting it would be used to produce weapons.

NATANZ, IRAN

Uranium enrichment facility Israel and the United States suspect is used for nuclear weapons purposes.

PLANES

F-15L/F-16L: When fitted with long-range fuel tanks, Israel's most advanced strike jets are capable of hitting targets 2,225 km away.

MISSILES

Jericho III: Less is known about Israel's missile capabilities, but it's thought that its latest such weapon can strike targets at least 4,800 km away.

TONIA COWAN/THE GLOBE AND MAIL

SOURCES: GLOBAL SECURITY ORG., WISCONSIN PROJECT ON NUCLEAR ARMS CONTROL

Before it bombed Syria, Israel provided the US with intelligence suggesting that North Korea was secretly supplying Damascus with nuclear technology, The Washington Post newspaper claimed yesterday.