[ RadSafe ] The Suspected Syrian Nuclear Reactor

[Roger Helbig]

This Nuclear-News piece actually leads to an excellent article that is
well worth being read

http://blogs.cfr.org/zenko/2016/03/01/red-teaming-nuclear-intelligence-suspected-syrian-reactor/

Roger Helbig

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The Suspected Syrian Nuclear Reactor

by Christina MacPherson

Red Teaming Nuclear Intelligence: The Suspected Syrian Reactor,
Council on Foreign Relations by Micah Zenko  March 1, 2016 In former
CIA and NSA director Gen. Michael Hayden’s new memoir,Playing to the
Edge: American Intelligence in the Age of Terror, he describes the
case of Al Kibar, in which Israeli officials informed the United
States in 2007 about a building under construction in Syria that they
thought was a nuclear reactor. Hayden writes, “Then we gave the data
to a red team, dedicated contrarians, and directed they come up with
an alternative explanation. Build an alternative case as to why it’s
not a nuclear reactor; why it’s not intended to produce plutonium for
a weapon; why North Korea is not involved.” (p. 258)

For the full story of the red teaming of Al Kibar, read this excerpt
from my book—based upon interviews with senior Bush administration
officials—Red Team: How to Succeed by Thinking Like the Enemy.

Red teaming is not only about using a devil’s advocate to scrutinize
and challenge day-to-day operations. For institutions facing a
significant decision, red teaming may also be a one-time effort. We
can see how a properly administrated red team can help ensure that a
crucial decision is the right one by studying the following example
found in recent national security decision making.

In April 2007, Israeli national security officials surprised their
American counterparts by informing them about a large building under
construction at Al Kibar in a valley in the eastern desert of Syria.
In oneon- one briefings, the Israeli officials provided dozens of
internal and external color photographs dating back to before 2003.
The evidence strongly suggested that the building was a nuclear
reactor, remarkably similar to the gas-cooled, graphite-moderated
reactor in Yongbyon, North Korea. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert
then delivered his request to President George W. Bush: “George, I’m
asking you to bomb the
compound.”.........http://blogs.cfr.org/zenko/2016/03/01/red-teaming-nuclear-intelligence-suspected-syrian-reactor/