# Things heating up in the Middle East **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 25, 2006, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019 "2006-07-25T23:05:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Winston\_Smith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e95f7d/32.png) [@Winston\_Smith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winston_Smith)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2006, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/1 "2006-07-25T23:05:46Z")
From [CNN.com](http://CNN.com) > [@](#): > > – An Israeli air raid struck a United Nations observation post and killed four U.N. observers in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese security sources. I half expected the news dispatch to say WWIII had started in earnest. This doesn’t seem far from that, actually. Scary. ---
**Author:** ![Seven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Seven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seven)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/2 "2006-07-26T01:39:43Z")
Give it time. Bush and Co. are now on the case. ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/3 "2006-07-26T02:43:35Z")
Someone is going to hand Israel their ass if they don’t stop. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/4 "2006-07-26T02:48:52Z")
> [@diggleblop](#): > > Someone is going to hand Israel their ass if they don’t stop. Who? The US ain’t gonna, neither will the UK. The French have probably surrendered to somebody by now. Germany most definitely ain’t gonna do anything. Syria got their ass handed to them last time they tried Israel. Iran can’t get there without going through the US, and that ain’t gonna happen. Even if Iran tried it, Israel can prolly take em. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/5 "2006-07-26T02:49:19Z")
> [@diggleblop](#): > > Someone is going to hand Israel their ass if they don’t stop. I’m not actually coming down as supporting either side here, but I AM curious…who would this someone be? Israel has the best-equipped military in the region. They have troops who are absolutely aware that they’re fighting for the continued existence of their country and possibly the Jewish presence in the region. They will be, _in extremis_, backed up, with supply at least even if personnel isn’t a practical possibility (given our current (pre)occupation in Iraq), by the US. Who’s going to hand them their ass? ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/6 "2006-07-26T02:59:20Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Who? The US ain’t gonna, neither will the UK. The French have probably surrendered to somebody by now. Germany most definitely ain’t gonna do anything. Syria got their ass handed to them last time they tried Israel. Iran can’t get there without going through the US, and that ain’t gonna happen. Even if Iran tried it, Israel can prolly take em. Iran ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/7 "2006-07-26T03:01:25Z")
and what I mean is that if Iran is as close to the nuke as they say they are, they won’t hesitate one bit to use it once it’s done. It’s just going to escalate that bad if something doesn’t give soon. It may be ten years until then, but Iran won’t forget. I see it as Lebanon being Iran’s right hand and Israel being the US’s right hand. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/8 "2006-07-26T03:07:03Z")
> [@diggleblop](#): > > Iran Yeah, right. Looked at a map recently? They can’t get there without going through the US military, or invading either Turkey or Saudi Arabia. That ain’t gonna happen. Even if it did, and for some reason we allowed an invasion force to make it that far, Israel can probably handle Iran with conventional forces. Add to that the fact that Israel has nukes, and you’re dreaming in technicolor. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/9 "2006-07-26T03:08:58Z")
If Iran gets that close to producing a weapon, Israel will act. They’ve done it before. The only problem is that this time we are in the way. That means they may have to wait for an attack by Iran to nuke every enemy capital city off the map. They will, too. Damascus, Teheran…poof! ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/10 "2006-07-26T03:10:08Z")
Can’t they fire a _missle_ with a nuclear warhead attached to it? In turn, making it go _over_ their obstacles. Why is that so unbelievable? The Iranian leadership are known extremists. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/11 "2006-07-26T03:10:49Z")
> [@diggleblop](#): > > Iran Or it could be Syria. Remember that Saddam had the Russians truck all his nuclear warheads to Damascus in order to prevent them falling into American hands. They could, even as we speak, be perched atop Syrian scuds redeploying at the southern extreme of the Bekáa valley. ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/12 "2006-07-26T03:12:30Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > Or it could be Syria. Remember that Saddam had the Russians truck all his nuclear warheads to Damascus in order to prevent them falling into American hands. They could, even as we speak, be perched atop Syrian scuds redeploying at the southern extreme of the Bekáa valley. Yup. And how many warheads went “missing” too? ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/13 "2006-07-26T03:16:00Z")
> [@diggleblop](#): > > Can’t they fire a _missle_ with a nuclear warhead attached to it? In turn, making it go _over_ their obstacles. Why is that so unbelievable? The Iranian leadership are known extremists. If they had a working delivery system and a working nuke, they could try it. Fortunately, they don’t…plus any launch from Iran is going to trigger an impressive fireworks display from both US and Israeli Patriot Batteries, and possibly from AEGIS Cruisers in the Persian Gulf. The thing about nuking Israel is that retaliation is absolutely guaranteed from Israel, and likely from the US as well. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/14 "2006-07-26T03:18:23Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > Remember that Saddam had the Russians truck all his nuclear warheads to Damascus in order to prevent them falling into American hands. What on earth are you talking about? ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/15 "2006-07-26T03:21:38Z")
> [@diggleblop](#): > > Yup. And how many warheads went “missing” too? Well, if you _must_ know, **zero** , because Saddam didn’t have any nukes. But he shipped all he _had_ to Syria. Back to the OP. [It’s getting hotter](http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,19916610-5005961,00.html) > [@](#): > > UN Secretary General Kofi Annan today said he was “shocked” at Israel’s “apparently deliberate targeting” of a UN post in Lebanon, in which up to four UN observers were killed. ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/16 "2006-07-26T03:21:52Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > If they had a working delivery system and a working nuke, they could try it. Fortunately, they don’t…plus any launch from Iran is going to trigger an impressive fireworks display from both US and Israeli Patriot Batteries, and possibly from AEGIS Cruisers in the Persian Gulf. The thing about nuking Israel is that retaliation is absolutely guaranteed from Israel, and likely from the US as well. Oh, most definitely, it would be all out devastation. It would turn half the continent into a sheet of glass. Let’s just hope that doesn’t happen, my God. Terrible. I just wish they would all just calm down over there. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/17 "2006-07-26T03:21:55Z")
> [@diggleblop](#): > > and what I mean is that if Iran is as close to the nuke as they say they are, they won’t hesitate one bit to use it once it’s done. It’s just going to escalate that bad if something doesn’t give soon. It may be ten years until then, but Iran won’t forget. I see it as Lebanon being Iran’s right hand and Israel being the US’s right hand. Oh please. Israel has nukes too. So does the United States, and either or both of these countries would be more than willing to show Iran why casually lobbing nukes around is a bad idea. Iran’s leaders know this; they aren’t stupid. As long as Israeli forces don’t enter Iranian territory, Iran will do nothing but give moral support and cheap shitty rockets to Hezbollah, no matter how long this war lasts. Also, I strongly suspect that this conflict was not a big surprise to Iran’s leaders. They probably told Hezbollah to get Israel riled up, so as to distract Bush and Friends from Iran’s nuclear ambitions. ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/18 "2006-07-26T03:25:05Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > Well, if you _must_ know, **zero** , because Saddam didn’t have any nukes. But he shipped all he _had_ to Syria. > > Back to the OP. [It’s getting hotter](http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,19916610-5005961,00.html) One part of me I thinks Annan should let any investigations finish before saying that. And the other part says that every other missle strike from Israel has been near precision, why would this one be any different? ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/19 "2006-07-26T03:25:51Z")
Something that needs to be looked at is the fact that the only Arab leaders who actually WANT Israel gone are the Palestinians. All the leaders of the other Arab nations talk a big game about Israel because it keeps their people’s eyes focused on something other than the fact that most of these countries’ populations have no rights or money or…anything, really. Israel is to the non-Palestinian Arab leaders as abortion is to the Republicans in the US. The _actual_ abolition of either Israel or abortion would be disastrous to their respective nemeses… ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2006, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019/20 "2006-07-26T03:27:25Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > Oh please. Israel has nukes too. So does the United States, and either or both of these countries would be more than willing to show Iran why casually lobbing nukes around is a bad idea. Iran’s leaders know this; they aren’t stupid. As long as Israeli forces don’t enter Iranian territory, Iran will do nothing but give moral support and cheap shitty rockets to Hezbollah, no matter how long this war lasts. > > Also, I strongly suspect that this conflict was not a big surprise to Iran’s leaders. They probably told Hezbollah to get Israel riled up, so as to distract Bush and Friends from Iran’s nuclear ambitions. I never stated the U.S. and Israel didn’t have nukes. I simply stated that Iran may in fact be crazy and careless enough to “lob” some nukes around. After all, Iran hasn’t been the pillar of peace throughout history, have they? But I agree with your second part. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-heating-up-in-the-middle-east/366019.md?page=2)