What Was Hit In Syria?

Speculation continues to swirl around what exactly happened in Syria 10 days ago. There are repeated reports that Israel managed to hit a Syrian nuclear facility, although reports are starting to suggest what happened. One report notes that a group of eight attack aircraft, accompanied by intel aircraft were involved. Another report notes:

At a rendezvous point on the ground, a Shaldag air force commando team was waiting to direct their laser beams at the target for the approaching jets. The team had arrived a day earlier, taking up position near a large underground depot. Soon the bunkers were in flames.

Ten days after the jets reached home, their mission was the focus of intense speculation this weekend amid claims that Israel believed it had destroyed a cache of nuclear materials from North Korea.

The Israeli government was not saying. “The security sources and IDF [Israeli Defence Forces] soldiers are demonstrating unusual courage,” said Ehud Olmert, the prime minister. “We naturally cannot always show the public our cards.”

The Syrians were also keeping mum. “I cannot reveal the details,” said Farouk al-Sharaa, the vice-president. “All I can say is the military and political echelon is looking into a series of responses as we speak. Results are forthcoming.” The official story that the target comprised weapons destined for Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Lebanese Shi’ite group, appeared to be crumbling in the face of widespread scepticism.

Andrew Semmel, a senior US State Department official, said Syria might have obtained nuclear equipment from “secret suppliers”, and added that there were a “number of foreign technicians” in the country.

Asked if they could be North Korean, he replied: “There are North Korean people there. There’s no question about that.” He said a network run by AQ Khan, the disgraced creator of Pakistan’s nuclear weapons, could be involved.

But why would nuclear material be in Syria? Known to have chemical weapons, was it seeking to bolster its arsenal with something even more deadly?

Alternatively, could it be hiding equipment for North Korea, enabling Kim Jong-il to pretend to be giving up his nuclear programme in exchange for economic aid? Or was the material bound for Iran, as some authorities in America suggest?

The early reports indicated that the Israelis simply dropped munitions on a deserted area near the border, but these reports are suggesting a far more detailed and comprehensive plan by Israel to penetrate Syria's air defense grid and deal with a perceived threat to Israel's national security.

In other words, Israel may have managed to carry out another Osirak style raid on one of Israel's enemies to thwart their nuclear ambitions.

The problem is that no one quite knows what was hit, and more importantly who was hit and possibly killed in the raid. Destroying bunkers with nuclear materials is one thing - those can be replaced. If you hit the technicians and scientists who are operating and working with those nuclear materials, that becomes a far harder asset to replace.