What Is Site 911? And Why Is The U.S. Building It For Israel At A Cost Of $100 Million?

U.S. Army

U.S. Overseeing Mysterious Construction Project In Israel -- Walter Pincus, Washington Post

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans to supervise construction of a five-story underground facility for an Israel Defense Forces complex, oddly named “Site 911,” at an Israeli Air Force base near Tel Aviv.

Expected to take more than two years to build, at a cost of up to $100 million, the facility is to have classrooms on Level 1, an auditorium on Level 3, a laboratory, shock-resistant doors, protection from nonionizing radiation and very tight security. Clearances will be required for all construction workers, guards will be at the fence and barriers will separate it from the rest of the base.

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Update #1: Why Is The US Building A Secret $100 Million Underground Facility Outside Tel Aviv? -- Business Insider
Update #2: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers taking bids to build complex for Israeli Air Force -- CNN

My Comment: Any predictions that  there will be American personal at this installation once this it is completed,?

What's Next In U.S. - Israeli Relations?

Barack Obama and Binyamin Netanyahu at the White House in 2010. If the US leader is inclined to make nice with his Israeli counterpart, one possibility is a visit to Israel in 2013. Photograph: Jason Reed/Reuters

Binyamin Netanyahu Faces Risk Of 'Payback' After Barack Obama Victory -- The Guardian

Israeli leader may be on the back foot over Iran and the Palestinians after apparently backing Romney for US president.

It was hard to imagine champagne corks popping in the Israeli prime minister's Jerusalem residence as Barack Obama took to the stage to make his victory speech. Much more likely was a mood of sombre resignation, possibly spiked with trepidation, as Binyamin Netanyahu reflected on his heavy bet on the wrong horse.

Judging by the swiftly delivered official response, there is no problem: Netanyahu and Obama will continue their close, warm and strategically aligned partnership.

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More News On U.S. - Israeli Relations After The US Presidential Elections

Israel PM congratulates Obama, says ties strong -- AFP
Netanyahu lauds Obama victory: Israel-U.S. ties are stronger than ever -- Haaretz
PM congratulates Obama: US-Israel ties stronger than ever -- YNet News
Obama victory spells trouble for Israel's Netanyahu -- Reuters
Obama victory raises questions about future of Israel relations -- Washington Post
Israelis hopeful that Obama knows the threat they face -- USA Today
Obama and Bibi's Rocky Road Ahead -- Ali Gharib, Daily Beast
Barack Obama’s Win, Benjamin Netanyahu’s Loss -- Dan Ephron, Daily Beast
After Obama Wins Second Term, Debate Shifts to Future of U.S.-Israel Relationship -- Jacob Kamaras, Algemeiner
Obama and Netanyahu -- After the U.S. and Before the Israeli Election --
Dr. Josef Olmert, Huffington Post
Five thoughts from Israel on Obama’s re-election -- Barak Ravid, Haaretz

My Comment: Israeli hawks are now very worried. As to what is my take .... the three issues that have .... and will continue to frame U.S. - Israeli relations in the months (and years?) to come are (1) Iran, (2) Palestinians and their move towards statehood, and (3) Syria. President Obama's re-election win will not bring any changes to these three issues.

Israel Is Warned To Not Launch A Pre-Emptive Strike On Iran

U.S. Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Israeli Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz, chief of general staff of defense forces, talk aboard a UH-60 helicopter and en route to Israeli defense forces installations participating in the Austere Challenge exercise, Oct. 30, 2012. Austere Challenge 2012 is a bilateral air-defense exercise between the U.S. and Israel involving more than 3,500 U.S. personnel in Israel and Europe and about 1,000 Israel defense forces members. DOD photo by D. Myles Cullen

US Warns Israel Off Pre-Emptive Strike On Iran -- The Guardian

Arab spring has left US-friendly rulers in region nervous about possible impact of an Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear programme.

US military commanders have warned their Israeli counterparts that any action against Iran would severely limit the ability of American forces in the region to mount their own operations against the Iranian nuclear programme by cutting off vital logistical support from Gulf Arab allies.

US naval, air and ground forces are dependent for bases, refuelling and supplies on Gulf Arab rulers who are deeply concerned about the progress Iran has made in its nuclear programme, but also about the rising challenge to their regimes posed by the Arab spring and the galvanising impact on popular unrest of an Israeli attack on Iran.

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My Comment: These warnings may be moot. Recent comments by Israel's defense minister has lessened tensions in the region and the possibility of an Israeli pre-emptive strike on Iran.

Update: Barak: Israel won't outsource its security to anyone -- Jerusalem Post

President Obama And Israeli PM Netanyahu Discuss Iran By Telephone

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks on the phone with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in the Oval Office in this September 28, 2012 White House handout photograph. REUTERS/Pete Souza/The White House/Handout

White House: Obama, Netanyahu Agree On Iran -- Voice of America

WHITE HOUSE — The White House says President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are in full agreement on wanting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. The two leaders discussed the issue by telephone Friday, and the Israeli leader also was scheduled to do so with Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney.

A White House statement says the president and the prime minister spoke as part of their regular consultations, and that Obama reaffirmed his “unshakeable commitment to Israel’s security.”

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More News On Today's Discussion Between President Obama And Israeli PM Netanyahu

Obama, Netanyahu seek to get past Iran differences -- Reuters
Netanyahu Gets To Obama by Phone -- Wall Street Journal
White House: US, Israel in full agreement on stopping Iran -- Jerusalem Post

How Much Military Aid Does The U.S. Give To Israel?

Here's How Much America REALLY Spends On Israel's Defense -- Business Insider

Last week the Jerusalem Post reported that former Israeli Defense Force (IDF) Commander-in-Chief Gabi Ashkenazi told a conference that U.S. taxpayers have contributed more to the Israeli defense budget than Israeli taxpayers in the past three years.

This comment has been passed around everywhere.

Alison Weir of Veterans News Now pointed out it was the first instance of an Israeli leader saying that U.S. taxpayers contribute more money to Israel's defense budget than Israeli taxpayers.

But the claim seemed fishy to us.

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My Comment: They can sugarcoat it all that they want .... but that is still an incredible amount of military aid.

U.S. Officials: Egypt And Jordan Will Cancel Their Peace Treaties With Israel If They Launch An Attack Against Iran's Nuclear Facilities

Israeli Strike Will Unite Arabs -- The Australian/The Times

AN Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear facilities could enrage the Muslim world so much that the leaders of Egypt and Jordan would have to cancel their peace treaties with the Jewish state, US officials have warned Israel.

The Israeli daily Yedioth Aharonot, quoting a senior Israeli official, said Washington had relayed the message that Arab leaders would have to bow to popular anger if Israel carried out such a strike.

"Today the Arab leaders do not control their peoples, the streets control the leaders," the unidentified US official told his Israeli counterparts. "An Israeli strike is just what the Iranians need. The entire Arab and Muslim street will take to the streets to demonstrate."

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My Comment: The U.S. is certainly giving out the impression (through these leaks) that they are doing everything in their power to persuade Israel to not attack Iran.

Israel's Government Is Betting On A Mitt Romney Election Win

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) during his meeting with U.S. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney in Jerusalem. (Reuters)

Binyamin Netanyahu Gambles On Mitt Romney Victory -- The Guardian

Israeli prime minister denies interfering in the US election, but his relationship with Barack Obama grows more antagonistic.

The political TV advertisement featuring Binyamin Netanyahu and the slogan "The world needs American strength, not apologies" is likely to fuel claims that the Israeli prime minister is interfering in the US presidential election in support of Republican candidate Mitt Romney.

It comes increasing during anxiety that Netanyahu has overplayed his hand in displays of warmth and enthusiasm for Romney while his relationship with Barack Obama grows more antagonistic. Some say Netanyahu is gambling too heavily on a Romney victory on November 6 and that if Obama is re-elected, the potential blowback could be damaging not just for the prime minister but for Israel itself.

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My Comment: If there is a Romney victory, I doubt that there will be a substantive change in U.S. policy towards Israel and to their concerns on Iran. Aside from a change in tone, the U.S. is not going to go to war against Iran .... and if there is a change, it will be in the imposition of more sanctions as well as putting pressure on our allies to not buy Iranian oil or to supply them with weapons. If President Obama wins re-election .... U.S. - Israeli relations are going to be in the toilet until Netanyahu is out of power.

Update: Israeli Minister denies that Israel has any favorites in the U.S. presidential election.

Israeli Warnings Will Not Change U.S. Assessment On The Need For Military Action

President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel hold a joint press availability in the Oval Office July 6, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Netanyahu’s Enrichment Warning Not Swaying U.S., Says Pentagon Policy Chief -- Kevin Baron and Gordon Lubold, Foreign Policy

Pentagon policy chief Jim Miller said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's warning this week that Iran would have nearly enough bomb-grade uranium to build a nuclear weapon in six months does not change the U.S. assessment of the need for military action.

Miller, under secretary of defense for policy, in an exclusive interview with the FP National Security channel on Wednesday, said that enrichment was just one factor in the U.S. calculation of how long it would take for Iran to have a working nuclear bomb.

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My Comment: This is one of those situations where I hope that our intelligence agencies are "on the ball" .... because if they are not, I can easily see many "worse case scenarios" being spun in the not so distant future.

Why Are We Paying To Develop Israel's Missile Defense System But Cannot Have Access To The Technology?

Photos: “Iron Dome” launcher near Sderot, Israel (left); “Iron Dome” radar installation

U.S. Funds Israeli Missile Defense But Can’t Get the Technology -- Michael Tennant, New American

The United States has spent over $200 million on a highly effective missile defense system and plans to spend nearly $700 million more on it — yet U.S. troops in the field, including the highest-ranking military officer in the land, are still largely at the mercy of insurgents’ rockets. Why?

The answer is that U.S. taxpayers have been shelling out big bucks for the defense of a foreign country; and that country, in turn, has been unwilling to disclose to Washington the details of the missile defense system it is funding. All the while, a company owned by that same country’s government is raking in profits manufacturing and selling the system.

The country in question is Israel, and the missile defense system is called Iron Dome.

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My Comment: If you pay for it .... you should own it. But how the U.S. gets itself into these ridiculous situations sometimes amazes me.

Israel Will Not Tell The U.S. If They Should Decide To Attack Iran

(Click on Image to Enlarge)

Israel Unlikely To Warn U.S. In Advance Of Attack On Iran -- USA Today

Israel is unlikely to provide much if any advance notice to the United States if it attacks Iran's nuclear facilities, Middle East experts say.

Advance warning is important because a surprise could hurt the U.S.' ability to respond and safeguard its many assets in the Persian Gulf.

The assumption is that U.S. warning of an Israeli attack would come "significantly less than an hour" before it began, said Jon Alterman, director of the Middle East program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "How much of that would come from Israeli notification and how much would come from sensors we have in the region, I don't know."

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My Comment: So much for that "special relationship" between the U.S. and Israel. An Israeli commentary that analyzes this rift can be read here.

We Need A Debate Before Making Pledges To Israel On Military Action Against Iran

President Barack Obama meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, in the Oval Office, May 20, 2011. (by Pete Souza)

Obama Needs U.S. Debate Before Making Pledges To Israel About Attacking Iran -- Peter Beinart, Daily Beast

Obama has told Israel that America will take military action to prevent Iran from getting nukes. But before he commits us to war, he should make a full speech, go to Congress, and otherwise explain why such action is worthwhile.

For years now, Israelis have been noisily debating military action against Iran. And their conclusion, according to polls, is that America should do it. That’s somewhat ironic given that self-reliance—never again putting Jewish destiny in non-Jewish hands—is core to the Zionist ideal. But it’s also quite rational: an American strike would likely set back Tehran’s nuclear progress far more than an Israeli one would. And an American strike would not leave Israel as isolated in the world.

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My Comment: I concur that we need a public debate .... but we are not even having a debate on the continuing war in Afghanistan .... nor on the many small wars that we are now involved in from Mali to Somalia to Yemen, etc.... so I doubt that we will have a debate on what promises should we give to Israel if there is an Israeli - Iran war.

U.S. Efforts To Convince Israel To Accept US Strategy On Iran Not Succeeding

Israeli Officials Slam Obama's 'Wretched' Iran Red Line -- YNet News

Say US position is pushing Islamic Republic to become country at brink of nuclear capability. 'Who knows when and what they'll decide,' the officials added.

Just days after US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta visited Israel it seems that the Obama administration's efforts to calm down the Israeli government on the topic of Iran have not made an impression with Jerusalem decision makers.

Senior officials on Sunday leveled severe criticism against the US, declaring that the American position on a date for a military strike against Iran was a "wretched red line."

"The US' stance is pushing the Iranians to become a country at the brink (of nuclear capability)," explained sources well versed in the nuclear issue. "The Americans are de facto allowing the Iranians to continue to enrich uranium and become a country at the brink. We are not prepared to allow that (to happen)."

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My Comment: The Israelis are complaining .... or at least some of them. But without the necessary military resources to succeed in stopping Iran's nuclear ambitions, their options are limited.