Why Israel Is Worried about Iran's Nuclear Ambitions

(New York Times) Reuel Marc Gerecht and Ray Takeyh - Iran's thwarted ballistic-missile attack on Israel on Oct. 1 was an attempt to diminish the humiliation that Tehran has felt after Israel rapidly deconstructed its most cherished protege, Hizbullah. Given the two-time failure of Iran to overwhelm the Jewish state's air defenses, the regime's huge investment in ballistic missiles has proved suddenly wanting. Iran has been steadily making progress on its nuclear weapons capabilities over the past year. It is now, according to the U.S. government, down to a one-to-two-week breakout time to produce enough uranium for one atomic bomb. With its proxy fighters under siege and its conventional weapons proving insufficient, Tehran may be closer than ever to crossing the threshold and building a nuclear weapon. Mr. Gerecht is a resident scholar at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Mr. Takeyh is a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.


2024-10-08 00:00:00

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