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3/8/12

Iran attack: Here's the deal

The New York Post is reporting that Obama persuaded Israel's  Netanyahu to delay an attack on Iran into 2013 by  promising to provide  Israel with advanced new bunker-busting bombs and several in-flight refueling tankers.  This makes a lot of sense. Israel's rationale  for attacking in the next few months is  that -- using their current bunker-busters -- they will  soon be unable to destroy deeply-buried Iranian facilities. But  the latest  US ultra-deep  bunker busters,  combined with enough refueling tankers to keep a fleet of Israeli fighter bombers aloft for many hours would change the whole equation. For Israel  such a  deal would remove the imperative for imminent attack. For  Obama it  would delay any war until  after the  general election, meanwhile it gives diplomatic efforts and sanctions  more chance of working. And,  as a bonus, it applies still more leverage to the Iranians to negotiate,  knowing the advanced weaponry  Israel will have in store for them, if the Iranians  don't back off from developing nukes.