Basically, and to cut through this lengthy article, Israel has to let Iran know that it will be wiped off the face of the Earth...or as the former Deputy Undersecretary of State told Pakistan, "Bombed back to the stone age". Sometimes being truthful is the best way...without all of the boiler plating. If Iran knows that no matter what it does, it will disappear in a cloud of smoke., it's mullahs might think twice about attacking the Jewish state. Pre-emption here suffices too, that is, detroying it's nuclear capabilities before it goes on line so to speak., Shihabs or no. The best defense, unlike basketball, is a good offense, in international politics. The complete opposite of what we are seeing now with Iran. Had Hitler been stopped in 33, there would be a lot more Jews alive today, it's that simple.

Arad's is a first class piece of analysis. One should read between the lines. This guy knows his stuff.

Why the Iranian PM was not killed in NYC. I have read an article where one guy said that he was very sorry that he did not kill Hitler during a reception in Munich in 1931 (he was a Christian American student in Germany). Why PM was not killed, or a long bloody war with Iran is better for business?

Because lol maybe Iran has already made a "preemptive" kill on the israeli person they suspect "would have" killed the Iranian president at the UN. You should watch the Terminator movies, it's exactly how Israel acts and justifies it's actions.

Ahmadinejad is just the mouthpiece for the mad mullahs of Iran who will only trot out another.

To Chris Chicago: Iranian PM was not killed for the same reason Bush & Co is not killed by rest of the world. When Chavez called him "Devil" there were laughs and giggling. Who would have thought this 10 years ago?. US/Isreal IS NOT the world. The whole world now knows lies and double face of USA. I will ask the same question when Bush goes to Iraq: Why is he not killed for his war crimes? USA/UK and Isreal know very well in their hearts that Iran is now un-stoppable and your hegemony days are over.

Dear Editor, Neither Iran nor hizbollah are terrorist states, but it is Israel that has more than 200 undeclared nuclear bombs and is killing, terrorizing and torturing palestinian people who resists its occupation of their mother land. Bush is also very dangerous man with unconditional support of its pupy zionism which is in charge of super power nuclear country that can wipe out any country in the name of preemptive or self defence. World is under real danger of Bush and Israel and it is unable to do anything about it. stop calling enemy of US policy terrorist , since US policy toward ME and world is very wrong and using force will not solve anything other than killing innocent people as Iraqi and lebonese people.

Excellent article. We (U.S.) should be similarly concerned with the Deterrence Deficit we have created based upon our failure to swiftly resolve the Iraq problem. A world in which BOTH Israel and the U.S. have separately increased our individual Deterrence Deficits is sure to result in catastrophic consequences if fanatical nations percieve an opportunity for hostile action.

Perhaps the goal of Israel's enemies is also to have deterrence. After years on bombing and destroying Arab lands and killing people with impunity, the Arabs know that they must have some deterrence too. Hence Hizbollah with their rockets and Iran with their nuclear program.

The only effective deterrence is to give back the occupied territories; the Golan Heigts and the Shebaa Farms. To share water and other natural resources in Israel-Palestine and sign a lastin peace with your neighbors. If the Israel state is unable to do that the future is bleak for Israeli society. The USA is not now what it was. Peace is the only solution, deterrence is a figment of the imaginaiton of Prof. Arad.

Zionism is the ideology which maintains the idea of establishing a viable Jewish state approx. 2000 years after the Jews were driven out of their land into the diasporra. Zionism is not about agression, war nor occupation of other's lands. - So you are basically saying that the idea of maintaing a viable Jewish state should be reconsidered altogether? - As to the terrorising of the Palestinians: since the inception of Israel in 1948 (and even before that actually!!) the Jewish inhabitants of that piece of land have been subject to numerous lethal attacks - and I am reffering to civilians NOT to soldiers nor combatants. So is it alright for the Israelis to try and defend themselves from acts of terrorism? not according to you! -As to the nuclear arms - everyone knows that Israel has been holding on to nuclear arms for years - in fact since the mid-1960s according to literature on the subject. And yet despite the different wars it has been involved in, including the 1973 war - when Israel was surprised and did miserably in its first week - it didn't threat or use it neither in self-defence, nor preemption (they had news of the war in the hours preceeding it) - now that is really 'irresponsible' of them.... 'especially' in comparison to the aggressive regimes that hold, or are trying to precure nuclear arms today such as Iran or North Korea. Get your facts right, and study the material before you respond ignornantly about it.