U.S. establishes permanent radar site in Israel to watch Iran

U.S. establishes permanent radar site in Israel to watch Iran

U.S. establishes permanent radar site in Israel to watch Iran

Matthew Fisher, Canwest News Service
Published: 2 hours ago

JERUSALEM - The Yanks have landed in Israel.

For the first time in the Jewish state's 60-year history, the U.S. has established a permanent military presence here, according to Defense News.

About 120 American troops have arrived in the Negev Desert to set up an early warning radar that will track missiles launched in Iran, the authoritative U.S.-based weekly says in its current issue.

The X-band radar, which can track objects as small as a baseball at a distance of 4,700 kilometres, was transported over the past week in an air convoy of a dozen or more jumbo military aircraft from U.S. bases in Europe. The move, which was confirmed by Israeli sources on Sunday, was designed to significantly upgrade Israel's long-range radar capabilities to help answer the country's grave concerns about Iran's nuclear ambition.

The basing for the first time of U.S. forces and a high-powered U.S. radar system in Israel was interpreted in contradictory ways Sunday by the Haaretz newspaper.

While the new radar would improve Israeli anti-missile defences, its would limit Israel's ability to take "independent action against Iran, which the U.S. has made clear in recent months it opposes," the daily warned. The newspaper reasoned that it was likely to "restrain Israel, which would be wary about launching an attack that would endanger U.S. personnel."

Placing an X-band radar in Israel was first debated here several months ago and agreed to in Washington only two months ago. The high-tech gear is to be plugged into data from U.S. satellites and an Israeli-operated weapon system designed to shoot down ballistic missiles.

It is believed the advanced radar will increase Israel's warning time of a ballistic missile attack by several crucial minutes. The flight time to Israel of Iran's fastest missiles is thought to be as little as 11 minutes.

U.S. forces have been frequent visitors to Israel in recent years for joint training exercises or to operate Patriot anti-missile defence systems. But these troops have seldom stayed more than a few weeks at a time.

Israeli politicians and military leaders have been grappling for months whether to launch a pre-emptive strike against Iran's nuclear facilities. Much of the highly public debate has centred on exactly how far along Iran is in developing weapons.

Iran was "developing a command of uranium enrichment technology and galloping toward a nuclear bomb," according to remarks attributed to the Israeli cabinet last week by Brig-Gen. Yossi Baidatz, who heads the research section of military intelligence for the Israel Defence Forces.

There has also been intense discussions about whether the Israeli air force and navy could successfully carry out an attack by itself against multiple targets more than 1,200 kilometres away that are believed to be scattered and often buried deep underground.

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who often boasts of his country's nuclear program, has frequently used incendiary language to describe Israel. Only a few days ago he told the UN General Assembly that "the Zionist regime is on a definite slope to collapse and there is no way for it to get out of the cesspool created by itself and its supporters."

There has been no clear indication yet how long the U.S. troops will be posted to Israel or whether Israeli forces will be trained to eventually replace them. But the forward-based radar depends on satellites which Haaretz said would remain under U.S. control.

A similar radar system to one now in Israel was sent to Japan two years ago to help it track North Korean missiles.

Iran carried out a highly publicized simultaneous launch of three ballistic missiles in July. But a fourth missile fizzled on the launch pad.
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I very much prefer such defensive actions compared to pre-emptive strike to defend. I just hope such things, lessen the probability of a war or any strike.

Yet, 120 Americans will be operating this thing. donno why is that... u mean these genius israelis cant use this thing themselves?