[TIME] Tim McGirk and Aaron J. Kein - When a contingent of U.S. soldiers opens a radar facility on a mountaintop in the Negev desert next month, Israel will for the first time in its 60-year history have a permanent foreign military base on its soil. And despite the early warning that the American radar would provide if Iran launches a missile attack on Israel, some senior Israeli officials are nonetheless wary about its presence. One top official said, "It's a like a pair of golden handcuffs on Israel." The radar will allow the U.S. to keep a close watch on anything moving in Israeli skies. Israeli officials expressed concern that the radar's installation may anger Moscow, since its range will enable the U.S. to monitor aircraft in the skies over southern Russia.
2008-10-03 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive