Israeli attack on Iran: Sci-fi or Reality?

The Sunday Times of London would have us believe that Israeli warplanes are taxiing down the runway to go blow up Iranian nuclear sites. Sitting in Jerusalem, I was naturally a little worried about Iranian missiles raining down on us in retaliation if this story were indeed true. I have yet to find the keys to the dank bomb shelter under my newly rented apartment.

Who knows for sure? Israelis are understandably rattled by Iran's nuclear ambitions and Ahmedinejad's apocalyptic bombast. But I was reassured after an internet search on other stories by the same Sunday Times reporter. One was about Israel scientists inventing a biological bomb that could distinguish between Arabs and Jews. Another was that Israel had laid a string of neutron bomb "landmines" along the border with Syria. Both tales seemed straight from the pages of sci-fi rather than from a once reputable Sunday newspaper.

No doubt Israeli military experts are eager to to get rid of Iranian nukes-to-be. It's just ... they'd rather have the Pentagon do the job for them. And that may still happen.

--Tim McGirk/Jerusalem