Nes Ziyyona
31°55'35"N 34°48'12"E
Israel is believed to have the capacity to produce chemical warfare agents, and probably has stocks of bombs, rockets, and artillery shells. Public reports that a mustard and nerve gas production facility was established in 1982 in the Dimona restricted area are apparently erroneous. Israel is also probably poised to rapidly produce biological weapons, though there are no public reports of currently active production effort or associated locations.
In 2008 the US Congressional Research Service reported that unclassified sources indicated that several nations were considered, with varying degrees of certainty, to have some BW capability, including China, Iran, Israel, North Korea, Russia, and Syria.
Israel's biotechnology industry is relatively new and an offspring of its American counterpart. Its creation in the late 1960s resulted from the establishment in Israel of subsidiaries of foreign pharmaceutical companies. Many economists call biotechnology a "natural" Israeli industry. Its primary input has been data from research and university laboratories. The only other major ingredient has been American capital to support research and development activity. The main areas of research in the mid-1980s included genetic engineering, human and animal diagnostics, agricultural biofertilization, and aquatic biotechnology.
Israel's primary chemical and biological warfare facility is at Nes Ziyyona [Noss Ziona], near Tel Aviv. The Israeli Institute for Bio-Technology is believed to be the home of both offensive and defensive research.
Israel's chemical and biological warfare activities and associated facilities are very poorly attested in the open literature. The date of construction of such facilities is unknown, and it cannot be excluded that the facility at Nes Ziyyona is of rather recent vintage. In any event, important elements of a relatively small scale chemical and biological weapons program could be conducted in fairly small facilities that might lack evident signatures.
Declassified CORONA imagery from 1971 reveals a possible special weapons related facility in the Nes Ziyyona area. The facility consists of about a dozen buildings, apparently surrounded by a security perimeter which encloses extensive vegetation that would block external observation of the facility. The outer security perimeter is apparently associated with a patrol path for security guards. The facility apparently consists of two complexes. The first complex is a possible access control and administrative area, located near the single entry point to the facility. The second complex, in the interior of the facility, is surrounded by an area cleared of vegetation, which may be associated with an additional inner security perimeter. This second complex consists of several buildings which are not inconsistent with small scale agent development and production.
Overview
August 6 1970
1967
1969
1971
The Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR) in Ness-Ziona is subordinated directly to the Prime Minister, like the Nuclear Research Center Negev (NRCN), for example. The Israel Institute for Biological Research operates under a veil of great secrecy, and is considered one of the leaders in the world in dealing with chemical and biological threats. Due to the necessity of secrecy, its people do not participate in the public relations festival that sweeps the media, and therefore few know that this is the closest body in Israel to producing an effective vaccine for Corona. In fact, if there is a successful vaccine in Israel, it will only come from Mans-Ziona, thanks to the preparatory work done by its scientists: more Before the first virus samples arrived in their laboratories, they had already been prepared at the biological institute for the development of a vaccine for viruses with similar characteristics.
A countless number of speculations have been published around the world over the years regarding the institute where the State of Israel concentrated its efforts in the chemical and biological fields. The former deputy director of the institute, Professor Marcus Klingberg, became the star of a Soviet espionage scandal that was extensively covered by the media, and when in 1997 Mossad agents attempted to assassinate senior Hamas official Khaled Mashal in Amman, Jordan, media reports claimed that the substance injected into his body had been provided by specialists from this institute.
The Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR) is a governmental, cutting-edge applicable research institute, specializing in the fields of biology, chemistry and environmental sciences. The capabilities, scientific achievements and international reputation of IIBR are a result of decades of research and development (R&D) aimed at defense from chemical and biological threats. IIBR's core activities have generated leading capabilities in: biochemical processes, genomics, proteomics, pathophysiology of various infectious diseases and chemical exposures, pharmacology, synthesis of small and large molecules, bioinformatics, mathematical models, remte sensing, monitoring, advanced chemical analysis, diagnostic microbiology, environmental safety and more.
The Israel Institute for Biological research (IIBR) was established in 1952 as a governmental research institute, founded by a group of scientists from the IDF Science Corps and from academic organizations. IIBR is located in the small city of Ness Ziona. Over the years the Institute has been engaged in R&D in the fields of biology, chemistry, and environmental sciences in order to provide the State of Israel with scientific response to chemical and biological threats. Alongside this specialized activity, IIBR scientists contributed to the development of a vaccine for polio (1959); developed kits for the detection of explosive materials (1980); developed of a brand name drug against Sjogren syndrome (1984) marketed all over the world and is one of four brand name drugs developed in Israel.
In 1991, a governmental company, Life Sciences Research Israel (LSRI), was established alongside the Institute and serves as its business and marketing arm. Since 1992 a unique, a laboratory for the nationwide diagnosis of diseases caused by the bacteria Rickettsia, Ehrlichia and Leptospira was established in IIBR. Since 1995, the Institute has operated as a government-affiliated unit that research all areas of defense against chemical and biological weapons, including the operation of national laboratories for detection and identification of such threats.
Israel Aerospace Industries MLM Division is the system integration house of Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI). As a multifaceted design, development, and system engineering organization, MLM has the experience, knowledge, and capabilities to leverage its cutting-edge technologies to deliver systems that are among the most advanced in the world. MLM specializes in a variety of disciplines, which enables it to act as prime contractor and leading system architect for governments and armed forces around the world. The MLM division serves as the principal contractor for the Arrow Weapon System, and is responsible for the interceptor missiles, launchers, and launcher controls. 2 MLM division also manufactures the Jericho family of ballistic missiles.
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