Saudi says will intercept Israeli jets

Saudi Arabia warned it will intercept Israeli fighter jets that enter its airspace en route to an attack on Iran, the Hebrew daily Yedioth Ahronoth says. The warning was relayed via Washington and raised by top U.S. administration officials who recently visited Jerusalem, the Hebrew language daily said Thursday. Sources in Jerusalem said it appears the Obama administration "leveraging the Saudi threat in an attempt to dissuade Israel from launching a unilateral offensive on Iran's nuclear facilities," the paper said. Other sources said they believe Riyadh would permit Israeli jets to enter its airspace if Israel coordinates the military strike with Washington and doesn't carry out a military operation unilaterally. In the event of a military strike on Iran's nuclear sites, Israel has three route options: a northern route, which requires flying over Turkey and Syria; a southern route over Saudi Arabia; or a central route over Jordan and Iraq. Due to the deteriorated relationship between Jerusalem and Ankara following the Israeli commando attack in 2010 in which nine activists on the Turkish boat Mavi Marmara, which sought to break the Gaza, were killed, it is likely Turkey wouldn't permit Israeli fighter jets to enter its airspace, Yedioth Ahronoth said. However, there is a possibility that Turkey will "turn a blind eye" because of commitments to the United States, the paper said. Concerning the next leg of the journey, which would require entering Syrian airspace, the Syrian air force is still operational but its capabilities are considered weak. However Syria's air defense systems are considered to be advanced, the paper said. The option of entering Jordan and Iraqi airspace is considered to be the preferred route for Israel, however it isn't clear whether Jordan would turn a "blind eye" to Israeli jets entering its airspace heading east, or whether it would consider such an act a threat to its sovereignty, which may jeopardize the peace treaty between the countries, Yedioth Ahronoth said.