Members of an Israeli reconnaissance unit have been operating
in western Iraq for several weeks in an attempt to locate
Iraqi Scud missile bunkers, Time Magazine reported this
week. There are vast open areas in western Iraq where such
missiles could be hidden. Also that part of Iraq is closest
to Israel.
The report was published a day before UN inspectors arrived
in Baghdad to begin inspection of Iraq's nuclear, chemical,
and biological arsenal to see if it has any weapons of mass
destruction.
According to Time, the unit, likely Unit 5101 better
known as Shaldag, has been surveying a huge expanse of land,
fifteen times the size of Israel, in its effort to pinpoint
Scuds and launchers ahead of a US attack on Iraq.
Iraq used its flat western desert as a huge launch pad for
its Scud missiles during the Gulf War, constantly changing
the location of its launchers to avoid their destruction by
US and allied aircraft.
Should war with Iraq erupt, Israel has also requested that
its soldiers be allowed to continue their reconnaissance in
Iraq, said the Time report.
The bulk of the searching will be carried out by British and
American special forces, Israeli sources say. One expert
said, "I am not so sure the US needs Israel's help."
Some observers suggested that the effort was intended more to
boost Israeli morale than to make a serious contribution. The
US has said that if war breaks out one of its first tasks
would be to eliminate any remaining Iraqi Scud launchers that
could threaten other states in the Middle East.
