On June 7, 1981, Israel destroyed the Iraqi nuclear reactor at Osirak in a pre-emptive strike, which potentially changed the course of history in the Middle East. Just imagine, if you will, Saddam Hussein with a vast oil supply AND nuclear weapons. The US would have never dared to start Operation Desert Storm. And in an almost expected show of double standards, Israel got away with a gentle pat on the wrist from the UN. This could imply that the world secretly applauded the decision, while forced to reprimand Israel in public, in accordance with international law. I mean, Israeli-Palestinian vendettas aside, who would really want a lunatic like Hussein to go nuclear anyway?
The issue is, how long before something like this happens between Israel and Iran? Will Israel do us a favour and knock out the Iranian nuclear resarch sites before they go nuclear? This is not a trivial decision, because if the reactor has already started producing nuclear fuel, there is the possibility of nuclear fallout affecting the surrounding civilian population. It was precisely this factor that led Begin to attack when he did, since the reactor was expected to go live three weeks after June 7, 1981. Oh, and the upcoming Israeli elections might have had something to do with it too.
I guess the most we can do is sit back and watch. What will it be called this time, Operation Opera, Act II?