Can Israel defend herself? You betcha!
London's
The Sunday Times reported in 2010 that the Israeli Navy's Flotilla 7, comprised of three German-built Dolphin-class
submarines — the
INS (Israeli Naval Ship) Dolphin, the
INS Tekuma and the
INS Leviathan — have paid less than clandestine visits to the Gulf in the past, undoubtedly to send a message to the Iranian Mullahs who continue to call for the destruction of Israel.
The flotilla’s commander, identified only as “Colonel O”, told an Israeli newspaper:
We are an underwater assault force.
We’re operating deep and far, very far, from our borders.
Fifth Sub Delivered, Sixth On Its Way...
Long suspected of equipping their growing armada of subs with nuclear armed cruise missiles,
Russia Today quoted Former German State Secretary Lothar Ruhl earlier this year that he's “always assumed that Israel would deploy
nuclear weapons on the submarines.”
Dolphin-class submarines are equipped with hydraulic ejection systems that enable the underwater launch of Israeli Popeye Turbo SLCM long-range cruise missiles, believed to have nuclear warheads.
Israel’s Popeye cruise missiles are believed to have a range of up to 900 miles and carry a 450 pound payload, enough for a 100 to 200 kT variable yield warhead, the equivalent of 200,000,000 - 400,000,000 pounds of TNT.