New Delhi:
The war between Israel and Gaza is at real risk of expanding into a larger regional war, with Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah group firing rockets into Israel. Israel also launched counterattacks on Hezbollah amid rising border tensions. Both Israel and its closest ally, the US, have warned Hezbollah against opening a second front in the fight against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Israel and Iran are waging a proxy war. While Iran funds Hezbollah and Palestinian Islamic Jihad and is reportedly looking for the “leader” of the Arab world status, Israel has expressed concern about Iran’s nuclear weapons program. Israel, along with the US, has spoken out in condemning Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons program, which they say could destabilize the entire region.
It is in this context that an Israeli Air Force airstrike in June 1981, dubbed “Operation Opera”, on a nuclear reactor in Iraq becomes relevant. Military analysts suspect that Israel will not hesitate to launch a similar attack on Iran if it is cornered from all sides in the event of a full-scale regional war.
For the time being, there are no indications of an impending offensive by Hezbollah against Israel, despite increasing border tensions. Iran has maintained, at least officially, that it is not involved in Hamas’s attack on Israel. While some Arab neighbors – keen to improve relations with Israel – see an opportunity to play a mediator role. But the situation is extremely volatile.
Operation Opera: Israel’s most daring airstrike
Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein started building a nuclear reactor in the 1970s. He signed an agreement with France to build two nuclear reactors: Tamuz 1 and 2. Israel knew this was a major threat because it would be dangerous to become a nuclear power under the dictator.
Israel ultimately decided to bomb the nuclear reactor while it was still under construction. Operation Opera was Israel’s longest air raid in a single day.
The main concern was the choice of the flight route, as there were several limitations: a large distance to the target (1,100 km), several hostile countries along the way and a limited amount of fuel.
The flight route ultimately chosen was suggested by then Israeli Air Force chief Major General David Ivry. He decided to send the planes over the vast sandy plains of Saudi Arabia to Iraq and back.
On June 7, 1981 at 4:00 PM, 14 fighter jets took off from Etzion Airport in Israel. At approximately 5:30 p.m., they struck and destroyed the Osirak nuclear reactor in Iraq, successfully completing their mission, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on its website detailing “Operation Opera.”
“In the initial phase of the operation, the IDF planned to use F-4 fighter jets. But as time passed, the newer F-16 fighter jets became available for use. During the operation, eight F-16 fighter jets from squadrons were deployed. There were 110 and 117 were used and six F-15A fighter jets were used as backup. In addition to the fighter jets, approximately 60 other aircraft were used in this operation,” the IDF said.
The jets took off from Israel in radio silence, with their radars turned off, and flew the 1,100km route – equivalent to flying from Delhi to Mumbai, which was a long way from home for the Israeli pilots. They flew over enemy territory at extremely low altitudes to avoid radar detection, demonstrating the extremely high skill level of the pilots. The jets were fully loaded with external fuel tanks, which were jettisoned once the fuel was used.
King Hussein of Jordan was on holiday in the port city of Aqaba during the attack. When he saw the planes passing overhead, he immediately alerted the Iraqis, warning them that they might be the target of an Israeli attack. It appears that Iraq never received the message because communication errors prevented the message from reaching Iraq, veteran Israeli journalist Shlomo Nakdimon wrote in a 2003 article.
They arrived and bombed the Osirak nuclear reactor in Iraq – with each fighter jet bombing the facility five seconds apart, the IDF says. All jets then returned home safely.
“The name of Operation Opera was chosen from a bank of names. The operation had to take place several times before it actually broke out. To ensure the secrecy of the operation, it was given a different name each time. When the operation finally took place, the official name was set as Operation Opera,” the IDF said.
Many countries condemned Israel for the airstrike on the nuclear reactor. But after the first Gulf War in 1990-91, leaders retroactively supported this incredible operation because the Israeli attack prevented Iraq from eventually acquiring nuclear weapons.