The Ultimate Defense Card: Strike on Nuclear Facilities Led to New Line of Thinking in Iran

At a panel at the ynet and INSS National Security Conference, former senior defense officials warned that the strikes in Iran damaged the nuclear program but did not eliminate it. They discussed a shift in Tehran, where dominant voices see nuclear weapons as a necessity, and addressed the possibility of an endless war with Iran.

At a panel at the ynet and INSS National Security Conference, moderated by Col. (res.) Assaf Orion, former senior defense officials warned that Iran's nuclear program was damaged but not eliminated. Avner Viln, a former senior defense official, said Iran still holds about 450 kg of uranium enriched to 60%, centrifuges that were not destroyed, and the required knowledge. He also referred to a new underground facility, 'Mount Makosh,' built at a depth that cannot be hit by bunker-busting bombs. Sima Shine, former head of the Mossad research division, said the dominant voices in Iran see nuclear weapons as a necessity, and Tehran could achieve nuclear capability within weeks if it maintains its uranium stockpile. Danny Citrinowicz, former head of the Iran branch in Military Intelligence, argued that Israel did not go to war because Iran was about to produce nuclear weapons immediately, but rather seized a strategic opportunity. According to him, the Iranian leadership understands that a nuclear weapon is 'the ultimate defense card.' Viln disagreed with this assessment and argued that on the eve of the strike, Iran was too close to comfort. Shine warned against a perception of endless war: 'If the regime in Iran does not fall even in 50 years, this must not be the future of the State of Israel.'