Exclusive: CIA Whistleblower Reveals India, Israel Planned Secret Strike on Pakistan's Nuclear Facility, but Indira Gandhi Said No
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A shocking revelation has emerged from a former CIA officer, who claimed that a proposed joint operation between India and Israel to target Pakistan's Kahuta nuclear facility in the early 1980s was thwarted by then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Richard Barlow, a counterproliferation expert who served in the CIA, made the statement in an interview with news agency ANI, stating that the operation was intended to prevent Pakistan from developing nuclear weapons. According to declassified accounts, India and Israel allegedly planned a preemptive airstrike on Pakistan's Kahuta uranium enrichment plant, which was the backbone of its nuclear program. The operation aimed to prevent Islamabad from proliferating nuclear weapons, particularly to Iran, which was seen as a significant adversary by Israel. However, Barlow noted that the US administration under President Ronald Reagan would have strongly opposed such a strike, especially if executed by Israel, as it could have disrupted America's covert war effort against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. He added that Pakistan exploited this US dependency as leverage, using the flow of covert aid to the Mujahideen as blackmail to maintain its nuclear ambitions. The Kahuta enrichment facility, established under the direction of Pakistan's nuclear architect AQ Khan, later became central to Pakistan's successful pursuit of nuclear weapons, culminating in its first atomic tests in 1998. Barlow's claims have sparked renewed debate on the historical dynamics of nuclear proliferation in the region and the role of international powers in shaping the regional security landscape. It's worth noting that the US President Donald Trump's recent statement on Pakistan's clandestine nuclear activities has reignited concerns about the country's nuclear program. India has responded by criticizing Pakistan's 'clandestine and illegal nuclear activities' and its historical behavior, further highlighting the complexities of the regional nuclear dynamics.
