Israeli Exercise Seen as Signal to Iran

FRIDAY, JUNE 20, 2008 - The New York Times

WASHINGTON — Israel carried out a major military exercise earlier this month that U.S. officials say appeared to be a rehearsal for a potential bombing attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Several U.S. officials said the Israeli exercise appeared to be an effort to develop the military’s capacity to carry out long-range strikes and to demonstrate the seriousness with which Israel views Iran’s nuclear program.

More than 100 Israeli F-16 and F-15 fighters participated in the maneuvers, which were carried out over the eastern Mediterranean and over Greece during the first week of June, U.S. officials said.

The exercise, which ended June 5, also included Israeli helicopters that could be used to rescue downed pilots. The helicopters
and refueling tankers flew more than 900 miles, which is about the same distance between Israel and Iran’s uranium enrichment plant at Natanz.

Israeli officials declined to discuss the details of the exercise, but its scope virtually guaranteed
that it would be noticed by foreign intelligence agencies. A senior Pentagon official who has been briefed on the exercise said it appeared to serve multiple purposes.

One Israeli goal, the official said, was to practice flight tactics,
aerial refueling, and all other details of a possible strike against Iran’s nuclear installations and its long-range conventional missiles. A second, the official said,
was to send a clear message to the United States and other countries that Israel was prepared to act militarily if diplomatic efforts to stop Iran from producing bombgrade uranium continue to falter.

“They wanted us to know, they wanted the Europeans to know, and they wanted the Iranians to know,” the Pentagon official said.
“There’s a lot of signaling going on at different levels.”

Many American experts believe that such an attack would delay but not eliminate Iran’s nuclear program, which is buried under earth and concrete and installed in long tunnels or hallways, making precise targeting difficult.

Several U.S. officials said they did not believe that the Israeli government has concluded that it must attack Iran and did not think that such a strike was imminent.

Shaul Mofaz, a deputy prime minister, told the newspaper Yediot Ahronot, in an interview published June 6: “If Iran continues with its program for developing nuclear weapons, we will attack. Attacking Iran, in order to stop its nuclear plans, will be unavoidable.”

But Mofaz was criticized by other Israeli politicians for seeking to boost his own standing as questions amount about whether the embattled prime minister, Ehud Olmert, can hang on to power.

Israeli officials have told their American counterparts that Mofaz’s statement did not represent official policy. But American military officials were also told
that Israel had prepared plans for striking nuclear targets in Iran and can carry them out if needed.

Iran has shown signs that it is taking the warnings seriously, beefing up its air defenses and stepping up air patrols. In one instance, Iran scrambled F-4 jets to double-check an Iraqi civilian flight from Baghdad to Tehran.

MICHAEL R. GORDON and ERIC SCHMITT