Perceval said:
bltay said:
4. Israel has numerous nuclear weapons, and one of their former leaders has stated that if Israel goes down, they will drag as many down with them as they can. I cannot put my hand on this quote right now, but I remember reading something along those lines.
Just for the record, the comment you are referring to was not made by an Israeli politician, nor Olmert as has been often claimed, it was in fact a proposed speech for Olmert drafted by Israeli political pundit Ben Capit
It can be found here:
http://www.nrg.co.il/online/1/ART1/457/743.html
Thanks for that link Perceval. You may be right, as I cannot say I absolutely remember the source of my memory. Very strange coincidence though, I just saw this posted on the Rense website:
_http://www.rense.com/general34/esde.htm
It appears to be a reprint of an article from 2003.
OK, since I am not supposed to post links to the Rense website, it led me to this:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/sep/21/israelandthepalestinians.bookextracts
And while searching for the original interview, I found this:
http://www.de.indymedia.o rg/2003/01/39170.shtml
The pertinent paragraphs translate to this:
Creveld: That depends on who does it and how quickly it happens. We possess several hundred atomic warheads and rockets and can launch them at targets in all directions, perhaps even at Rome. Most European capitals are targets for our air force.
Interviewer: Wouldn't Israel then become a rogue state?
Creveld: Let me quote General Moshe Dayan: "Israel must be like a mad dog, too dangerous to bother." I consider it all hopeless at this point. We shall have to try to prevent things from coming to that, if at all possible. Our armed forces, however, are not the thirtieth strongest in the world, but rather the second or third. We have the capability to take the world down with us. And I can assure you that that will happen, before Israel goes under.
Interviewer: This isn't your own position, is it?
Creveld: Of course not. You asked me what might happen and I've laid it out. The only question is whether it is already too late for the other solution, which I support, and whether Israeli public opinion can still be convinced. I think it's too late. With each passing day the expulsion of the Palestinians grows more probable. The alternative would be the total annihilation and disintegration of Israel. What do you expect from us?
This interview was conducted by Ferry Biedermann in Jerusalem.