Israel Matzav

No more than 12 hours' notice

Writing in the Times of London (and reprinted in The Australian - both of which are now behind pay walls), the sensationalist Uzi Mahnaimi is claiming that Israel has told the United States that it will give no more than 12 hours' advance notice of an attack on Iran.

Israeli officials told visiting USS Chief Joint of Staffs Martin Dempsey that it would give President Barack Obama no more than 12 hours notice if and when it attacks Iran, The London Times reported Sunday.

The Netanyahu government also will not coordinate with the United States an attack on the Islamic Republic, according to the report, the latest in a number of suposed scenarios concerning cooperation or lack of it between Jerusalem and Washington.

It is left to speculation whether the rumors are based on facts or are leaked by officials to mask the possibility of secret military coordination.

The London Times said its sources explained that that Israel fears that President Obama would try to torpedo an Israel attack if more notice were given because he is concerned that Iran will respond by blocking the Strait of Hormuz, sparking a rise in the price of oil that could cripple Western economies. If the attack were to occur in the next 10 months, it would put President Obama in a tight spot on the eve of his bid for re-election.

President Shimon Peres told Dempsey, "I am sure that in this fight [against Iran] we will emerge victorious. It is a fight that does not belong exclusively to the United States or Israel, but a global struggle to create a safe world for all peoples.”

I wouldn't even give Obama 12 minutes' notice - he'd probably call Ahmadinejad and warn him.

Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Binyamin Netanyahu, Iranian nuclear threat

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 5:33 PM