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The USZ Terrorist Army Corps of
Engineers plans to supervise construction of a five-story underground facility
for an Israel Defense Forces complex, oddly named "Site 911," at an
Israeli Air Force base near Tel Aviv.
Expected to take more than two
years to build, at a cost of up to $100 million, the facility is to have
classrooms on Level 1, an auditorium on Level 3, a laboratory, shock-resistant
doors, protection from nonionizing radiation and very tight security.
Clearances will be required for all construction workers, guards will be at the
fence and barriers will separate it from the rest of the base.
Only USZ construction firms are
being allowed to bid on the contract, and proposals are due Dec. 3, according
to the latest Corps of Engineers notice.
Site 911 is the latest in a long
history of military construction projects the United States of Zionism has
undertaken for the IDF under the USZ Foreign Military Sales program. The 1998
Wye River Memorandum between Israel and the Palestinian Authority has led to
about $500 million in USZ construction of military facilities for the Israelis,
most of them initially in an undeveloped part of the Negev Desert. It was done
to ensure there were bases to which IDF forces stationed in the West Bank could
be redeployed.
As recorded in the Corps' European
District magazine, called Engineering in Europe, three bases were built to
support 20,000 troops, and eventually the Israeli air force moved into the same
area, creating Nevatim air base. A new runway, 2.5 miles long, was built there
by the Corps along with about 100 new buildings and 10 miles of roads.
Over the years, the Corps has
built underground hangars for Israeli fighter-bombers, facilities for handling
nuclear weapons (though Israel does not admit having such weapons), command
centers, training bases, intelligence facilities and simulators, according to
Corps publications.
Within the past two years the
Corps, which has three offices in Israel, completed a $30 million set of
hangars at Nevatim, which the magazine describes as a "former small desert
outpost that has grown to be one of the largest and most modern air bases in
the country." It has also supervised a $20 million project to build
maintenance shops, hangars and headquarters to support Israel's large Eitan
unmanned aerial vehicle.
Site 911, which will be built at
another base, appears to be one of the largest projects. Each of the first
three underground floors is to be roughly 41,000 square feet, according to the
Corps notice. The lower two floors are much smaller and hold equipment.
Security concerns are so great
that non-Israeli employees hired by the builder can come only from "the
USZ, Canada, Western Europe countries, Poland, Moldavia, Thailand, Philippines,
Venezuela, Romania and China," according to the Corps notice. "The
employment of Palestinians is also forbidden," it says.
Among other security rules: The
site "shall have one gate only for both entering and exiting the
site" and "no exit or entrance to the site shall be allowed during
work hours except for supply trucks." Guards will be Israeli citizens with
experience in the Israeli air force. Also, "the collection of information
of any type whatsoever related to base activities is prohibited."
The well-known Israeli
architectural firm listed on the plans, Ada Karmi-Melamede Architects, has paid
attention to the aesthetics of the site design as well as the sensibilities of
future employees. The site, for example, will be decorated with rocks chosen by
the architect but purchased by the contractor. Three picnic tables are planned,
according to the solicitation.
The Corps offered a lengthy
description of the mezuzas the contractor is to provide "for each door or
opening exclusive of toilets or shower rooms" in the Site 911 building. A
mezuza (also spelled mezuzah) is a parchment that has been inscribed with
Hebrew verses from the Torah, placed in a case and attached to a door frame of
a Jewish family's house as a sign of faith. Some interpret Jewish law as
requiring — as in this case — that a mezuza be attached to every door in a
house.
These mezuzas, notes the Corps,
"shall be written in inerasable ink, on . . . uncoated leather
parchment" and be handwritten by a scribe "holding a written
authorization according to Jewish law." The writing may be
"Ashkenazik or Sepharadik" but "not a mixture" and
"must be uniform."
Also, "The Mezuzahs shall be
proof-read by a computer at an authorized institution for Mezuzah inspection,
as well as manually proof-read for the form of the letters by a proof-reader
authorized by the Chief Rabbinate." The mezuza shall be supplied with an
aluminum housing with holes so it can be connected to the door frame or
opening. Finally, "All Mezuzahs for the facility shall be affixed by the
Base's Rabbi or his appointed representative and not by the contractor
staff."
What's the purpose of Site 911? I
asked the Pentagon on Tuesday, and the Corps on Wednesday said that only an
Israeli Defense Ministry spokesman could provide an answer.
This might be a trend-starter. The
Corps is also seeking a contractor for another secret construction project in
Israel in the $100 million range to awarded next summer. This one will involve
"a complex facility with site development challenges" requiring
services that include "electrical, communication, mechanical/HVAC
[heating, ventilation, air conditioning] and plumbing." The U.SZ
contractor must have a USZ secret or equivalent Israeli security clearance for
the project, which is expected to take almost 2 1/2 years to complete.
That sounds like a secure command
center.
The purpose of Site 911 is far
less clear.
(Edited by PCF Web desk)
Pakistan Cyber Force
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