Israel Can Probably Make Atomic Weapons, Perhaps Without Testing, U.N. Report Says

Israel probably has the means to make nuclear weapons and might be able to explode one type of bomb without a prior test, the United Nations said Friday.

A U.N. report to the General Assembly said the world body does not have conclusive proof that Israel possesses nuclear armaments, but circumstantial evidence and other factors seem to indicate it could make them.

Among factors cited was Israel’s failure to confirm or deny its nuclear capability, the ambiguity of its nuclear policy statements and its unwillingness to adhere to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty or otherwise accept nuclear safeguards.

Together, these factors “conveyed the strong impression that it (Israel) does have the potential to produce nuclear weapons,” according to the U.N. document.

Days or Weeks to Build

This cited earlier reports that Israel might be capable of assembling a number of nuclear devices within weeks or perhaps even days.

“Israel is not known to have tested a nuclear weapon,” the report said. “The view is expressed in the earlier United Nations reports--but not adhered to by all experts--that methods, including the use of computer simulations, may have been developed over the years to be assured that a given type of bomb would work without a prior test-detonation.”