Is Israel’s decision to send a Dolphin submarine through the Suez Canal — overtly — a message to Iran, as this Jerusalem Post report suggests?
Well, duh.
Let’s review why. As I wrote back in 2006:
Israel’s long-range Dolphin-class submarines are reportedly able to launch nuclear-tipped Popeye Turbo cruise missiles…
Since the distance from Israel to Iran is far greater by sea than it is by air, Israel would need submarine bases at the end of the Red Sea and in the Indian Ocean in order for the Dolphins to pull within range of their targets.
As luck would have it, Israel has just such bases – according to foreign reports – in the Dahlak Archipelago, off the coast of Eritrea; and off the coast of either India, with which Israel has a flowering military alliance, or Sri Lanka, whose ties with Israel have grown quietly over the past several years. It was off the coast of Sri Lanka that Israel successfully tested – again, according to foreign reports – a submarine-launched cruise missile in 2000.
Remember, also, how the Israel Navy famously intercepted the Karine A arms smuggling ship deep in the Red Sea back in 2002.
For the past several years, Israel has placed significant emphasis on its naval warfare capabilities in general, and on control of the Red Sea in particular. The Dolphin is, actually, a formidable predator, and parading it through the Suez Canal is a not-so-subtle warning.
Filed under: 2009, Middle East, Security & Defense | Tagged: Dolphin, Egypt, Iran, submarines, Suez Canal
Israel needs to have 1 dolphin sub in the indian ocean ready to hit Irann use its Jericho 3 missles and upwards of 150 of its air force f-15 and f-16 fighters fully armed and loaded to strike Irans nuclear sites along with some 8 to 10 low yield (5 or 10 )kt nukes so move it Israel