Apr 23 2008
CIA Confirms Syrian-Korean Nuclear Plant Was Destroyed By Israel Last Fall
This is a stunning confirmation from the CIA regarding the threat to the US forces and its allies in the Middle East from a nuclear capability inside Sryia:
CIA officials will tell Congress on Thursday that North Korea had been helping Syria build a plutonium-based nuclear reactor, a U.S. official said, a disclosure that could touch off new resistance to the administration’s plan to ease sanctions on Pyongyang.
The CIA officials will tell lawmakers that they believe the reactor would have been capable of producing plutonium for nuclear weapons but was destroyed before it could do so, the U.S. official said, apparently referring to a suspicious installation in Syria that was bombed last year by Israeli warplanes.
The CIA officials also will say that though U.S. officials have had concerns for years about ties between North Korea and Syria, it was not until last year that new intelligence convinced them that the suspicious facility under construction in a remote area of Syria was a nuclear reactor, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity when discussing plans for the briefing.
This is a very disconcerting revelation. Syria has been a pathway for many Jihadist into Iraq to fight with al-Qaeda. Syria is also a looming threat to Israel. The threat from a secret nuclear facility is it could provide an untraceable source for nuclear bomb materials that could be handed to suicidal Jihadists and rampage as they see fit without the world being able to target the source of the material. Thankfully we were able to detect the activity and have action taken before it became operational. But we may not always be so lucky. Secret nuclear facilities and programs like those in Iran and Syria (and previously Iraq) are secret for a reason. Peaceful uses of nuclear power are not secret.
When are you going to call for Israel to declare its nukes and sign the appropriate treaties, Strata?
Now that we’ve had this briefing, we can go back to the status quo of overlooking and appeasing NK/Syrian proliferation.
PP,
Why would you see the same need for international monitoring of Israel and Syria?
Aren’t free and democratic governments inherently more responsible?
Hasn’t Israel been the victim since its inception?
Haven’t its military actions always been the response to attacks by its neighbors?
Do you even acknowledge Israel’s legitimacy?
http://joshualandis.com/blog/?p=690
“as Jay Solomon wrote in yesterday’s version of his WSJ article:
Less conclusive, however, is any firm evidence that Syria was attempting to develop nuclear weapons, according to the U.S. official. “People will probably spin this information in whatever direction they want,” the official said.
Israel deports Jews who marry Arabs to the West Bank, has laws forbidding sale and lease of land to Arabs in many designated areas, is ruled largely by rabbinical law, which even many secular Jews oppose, barbarously carpet bombed Lebanon while losing its war to Hezbollah, has an IDF which has within the past few days admitted to widescale war crimes, and steals our secrets.
And if you read Nakleh’s “Encyclopedia of the Palestine Problem” you will find it has usually been the oppressor, not the victim.
http://www.palestine-encyclopedia.com/EPP/Start.htm
There was some noise, borne out by the photos of the plant, that it was a plutonium reprocessing plant, since it lacked sufficient cooling facilities for even a minimal nuclear reactor.
Simply, NK tried to offshore their plutonium reprocessing.
Neo, with reference to the lack of sufficient cooling capacity: the plant was still under construction, and that part simply may not have been built yet. I of course don’t pretend to know whether or not that was indeed the case, but it certainly seems to be a possibility.
When are you going to call for Israel to declare its nukes and sign the appropriate treaties, Strata?
I would advocate Israel doing that when all of the countries that have participated in wars against Israel sign peace treaties and establish full bilateral diplomatic relations with Israel (only two have done so).
Oh, you mean you didn’t know that a large chunk of the world has been at war with Israel since May, 1948?
I wonder whereelse there will be a NORK’ian reactor … South America maybe?
If you have ever seen a nuclear plant (or even a power plant) built you will see them put down the coolant pipelines long before the main reactor building is constructed. While the plant was next to a river, the satellite photos should little activity near the water or between the main plant an the water, making it hard to believe it is a nuclear reactor.
On the other hand, there are multiple reasons to believe that it was a plutonium reprocessing plant, which would be only slightly less dangerous than a full scale nuclear reactor.
NK has been in 6-way talks over their nuclear ambitions. Offshoring the plutonium reprocessing of the rods taken from their existing facilities would allow them to project the faux aura of giving up their nuclear ambitions, while in reality going full steam ahead; all in line with their previous cheating.
http://www.palestine-encyclopedia.com/EPP/Start.htm
Israel is hardly the victim, with multitudes of dispossessed Palestinians held in refugee camps. Democratic? Jews who marry Arabs are deported to the West Bank. Land set-asides make illegal large tracts being sold to Arabs by Jews. Christians cannot attempt to convert Jews to Christianity. Rabbinical law prevails as secular Jews protest.. IDF members have admitted to widescale war crimes in the past week. Lebanon was indiscrimantly carpet bombed. Israel uses weapons financed by America against American proscriptions, but only gets wrist-slapped.
Militant Islam will grow as long as America allows Israel to hide its nukes and steal more land.
Israel is hardly the victim, with multitudes of dispossessed Palestinians held in refugee camps. Democratic? Jews who marry Arabs are deported to the West Bank. Land set-asides make illegal large tracts being sold to Arabs by Jews. Christians cannot attempt to convert Jews to Christianity. Rabbinical law prevails as secular Jews protest.. IDF members have admitted to widescale war crimes in the past week. Lebanon was indiscrimantly carpet bombed. Israel uses weapons financed by America against American proscriptions, but only gets wrist-slapped.
Militant Islam will grow as long as America allows Israel to hide its nukes and grow the settlements.
Blah, blah, blah.
Don’t sugar coat it Truthy, give it to us straight. Tell us how you really feel about the Jews?
Ah, BurkaBoy,
So you quote Joshua Landis? You are so transparent…Do you have all the America haters on your speed-dial? Landis is just another anti-American, Bush-hating, terrorist loving (assistant) Professor making a living of the taxpayers dime. Disgusting.
http://www.campus-watch.org/article/id/2359
Since Bush has the lowest ratings of any president in history at 28 % , it’s understandable how his humble motley crew of defenders use frenzied epithets in his defense.
BB,
You can try and justify that we’re simply defending President Bush but you know that isn’t true. You really do disgust us as much as we say. It’s all about “you” BB, but then you know that also because that’s what you want. It’s a shame you don’t have any real friends…all you can get attention from is those who see you as a mere irritant. And a dumb one at that.
The new sockpuppet gets his figures wrong.
GW has the ‘record’ disapproval level but the lowest approval level was Truman and he held it a 22% for 2 years.
Neo
I would have to find the detail shots released after the bombing but their is a pumping station right next to the river and a land depression leading right up to the plant.
The water pipes were probably put in first or early which would have attracted little attention.
If this is a Nork style reactor, it will be a graphite core unit which doesn’t require near the cooling of other types.
Some news fro the War onTerror…
2 Good posts over at Strata-Sphere about the ongoing Waron Terror. First, the CIA is going to tell CONgress that the bombing in Syria by the Israeli Air Force. I did suspect that this was the case after the Iraelis…