Can Israel stop Iran by force? Commentary by Col Itamar Yaar

Itamar Yaar, IDF reserve colonel and former deputy chairman of Israel's National Security Council, spoke about Israel's ability to stop Iran's nuclear program in an interview with Orient Express.

"Iran is still a long way away from getting a real nuclear weapon. The Iranian regime is only getting close to being able to carry out a test nuclear explosion, but it will be a long time before it becomes a real nuclear power. It cannot yet assemble a bomb for aircraft or a warhead for missiles," said an Israeli expert.

He said there was no need to destroy all nuclear facilities - breaking a few links in the chain was enough to significantly stall progress.

"This is exactly what Israel is doing by eliminating scientists or by sabotage actions," Yaar noted.

Commenting on the recent exercise, which practised fighting on several fronts, and the country's preparedness for such a military clash, he said it was certainly a difficult situation and it was advisable to avoid it. At the same time, according to him, Israel has made it clear to terrorist groups that in the event of a war with Iran, it will not act with careful methods, as usual, and Lebanon will face severe consequences, up to complete destruction. Therefore, it cannot be said with certainty that the Hezbollah leadership, having received an order from Tehran to fire all its missiles at Israel, will carry out that order precisely, and not limit itself to some low-level bombardment for the sake of demonstrating support for Iran.