A rocket fired on October 7, likely by Hamas, hit an Israeli military base where dozens of the country’s nuclear-capable missiles are believed to be located, according to a new report.
The missile missed any of Israel’s nuclear-weapon-carrying rockets, but caused a fire to spread near their storage facilities at the Sdot Micha base in central Israel, the New York Times said on Monday.
While Israel has never acknowledged it, whistleblowers, U.S. officials and satellite data estimate there are likely between 25 and 50 nuclear-capable Jericho missile launchers at the base.
It is unknown how many nuclear weapons Israel has.
Those weapons are likely stored at a different facility, the outlet said.
But the previously unreported attack would be the first time a suspected Hamas attack came so close to Israel’s nuclear-capable missiles.
It is unclear whether Hamas is aware of what is stored at Sdot Micha or whether it had just attacked the base as one of many military sites during its October 7 terrorist attack.
Neither Hamas nor Israel have commented on the attack on Sdot Micha.
An Israeli rocket is seen in a photo tweeted by the Israeli Air Force on October 4, 2020. X/IAFsite, Avichai Socher An illustration from a post using Google Earth showing the location of Gaza and the Israeli settlement of Sdot Micha. publication illustration
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The rocket hit the base, located 15 miles west of Jerusalem, around 10 a.m., hitting a small ravine near the Jericho missile facility, according to the Times.
Satellite images of the base revealed charred earth caused by the rocket explosion, and other records documented efforts to extinguish the brush fire sparked by the explosion.
Although the fire destroyed 40 acres at the base, it failed to hit any of the suspected Jericho missile facilities.
A rocket from the Gaza Strip landed on a street in Ashkelon, Israel, on Saturday, October 7, 2023. AP
It is unclear if more than one rocket was able to hit Sdot Micha, but many missiles fired from Gaza on October 7 were able to hit Israel when its Iron Dome air defense system was overwhelmed by the large amount of artillery.
Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists, noted that even if the fire had reached the missile facility, the underground storage building could withstand damage.
But he told the Times there were still risks if a fire of that size reached such a critical ammunition depot.
Rockets are fired towards Israel from Gaza, Saturday, October 7, 2023. AP
“All kinds of things can go wrong,” he said.
Recent satellite images of the base show that new berms and barriers have been built around the area where the rocket landed, likely to bolster Sdot Micha’s defense against future attacks.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn