Israel confirms attack on Syrian nuclear site in 2007

Revelation by the military could be a warning to Iran

TEL AVIV, Israel — The Israeli military confirmed Wednesday it carried out the 2007 airstrike in Syria that destroyed what was believed to be a nuclear reactor in one of its most daring and mysterious operations in recent memory.

Although Israel was widely believed to have been behind the Sept. 6, 2007, airstrike, it has never commented publicly on it.

In a lengthy release, the military revealed that eight F-15 fighter jets carried out the top-secret airstrikes against the facility in the Deir el-Zour region, about 300 miles northeast of Damascus, destroying a site that had been in development for years and was scheduled to go into operation at the end of that year.

Israel’s involvement has been one of its most closely held secrets and it was not immediately clear why Israel decided to go public now. The military would not comment, but the move could be related to the upcoming memoir of former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who ordered the strike and has hinted about it for years. It could also be meant as a warning to archenemy Iran, which is deeply involved in Syria’s conflict.

“The motivation of our enemies has grown in recent years, but so too the might of the Israeli military,” Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Wednesday. “Everyone in the Middle East would do well to internalize this equation.”

Throughout Syria’s seven-year civil war, Israel has carried out well over 100 airstrikes, most believed to have been aimed at suspected weapons shipments destined for the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group. Both Iran and Hezbollah are allied with Syrian President Bashar Assad.