Yet, that pre-emptive strike eliminated in one fell swoop the threat of nuclear holocaust in the volatile Middle East, and it gave the nations in that area a few more years of breathing space in which to consider alternatives to nuclear war. That there is still no peace, and knowing that the Iraqi dictator is determined to get his nuclear bomb, means that President Bush must act soon to prevent the worst from happening. And apparently, Saddam Hussein has skillfully hidden the facility in which rhe bomb is being manufactured. Thus, Bush's task will be infinitely more difficult than the pre-emptive strike by Israel.

The Israeli attack was amazing skillful. "The central building is entirely collapsed," said one of the French technicians who flew back to Paris after the attack. "The atomic reactor is unreachable and the anti-radiation shield has disappeared." The Frenchman also reported that one of the bombs did not explode, thereby making it impossible to rebuild the reactor without first destroying everything that remained. The technician complemented the Israelis on their skill. "The precision of the attack was stupefying. The Israelis chose their hour perfectly to avoid the maximum loss of human life."

Was the pre-emptive strike justified? Was it an act of aggression? First of all, Iraq took part in the Arab assault on Israel in 1948, shortly after the Jewish state declared its independence. The Iraqi attack was an act of war, and since then, no peace treaty has been signed between Israel and Iraq. So, technically, the two nations are still at war. In fact, Iraq felt free to launch missiles against Israel during the Gulf War, even though Israel took no part in that war and was restrained by the United States from retaliating.

However, if you know that your enemy is preparing to destroy you, must you wait until he attacks first before fighting back? Large land-mass countries like the U.S.A. and Russia can afford the luxury of waiting, if they want to. But a tiny country like Israel, with long vulnerable frontiers and mortal enemies in the region, has no choice but to strike first, if it is to survive.

We all know what happened when Israel permitted itself to be caught by surprise by Syria and Egypt in 1973. That two-week war cost Israel proportionately more casualties than the entire ten-year Vietnam War cost Americans. Unlike the U.S.A., Israel cannot afford long, passive, fruitless military operations that squander resources, drain the nation's will, cripple the morale of its soldiers, and end in defeat. So we can understand why Israel made its move against the Palestinians in the West Bank with sudden and overwhelming force. Even without Bush's urging them to get out, they were determined to destroy the terrorist infrastructure as quickly and effectively as possible.

The international community, instead of condemning Israel, should have thanked that nation for taking out the nuclear facility in Baghdad. The attack had awakened the world to the dangers of nuclear proliferation, particularly among small countries with ambitious dictators. When John Phillips, a Princeton student who had written a paper on how to built an atomic bomb, was approached by a Pakistani who wanted to buy Phillips' plan, he reported the incident to the FBI. He had no doubt that Iraq was building an atomic bomb with French technical help. "France is the whore of nuclear proliferation," he said bluntly.

We know that Osama bin Laden has been trying to get his hands on nuclear weapons. Does Saddam Hussein have a secret deal to supply them to bin Laden, at a price? What we do know is that George Bush wants to get rid of Saddam Hussein and his nuclear weaponry as soon as he can. How he will do it is no doubt the best kept secret in Washington, D.C. But we hope and pray that it is as surgical and efficient as the Israeli strike in 1981.

Samuel L. Blumenfeld is the author of eight books on education, including NEA--TROJAN HORSE IN AMERICAN EDUCATION, HOW TO TUTOR, ALPHA-PHONICS--A PRIMER FOR BEGINNING READERS, and HOMESCHOOLING--A PARENTS GUIDE TO TEACHING CHILDREN.

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