because, they said, they were
experiencing "technical pro-
blems." It was not an explana-
tion that was widely accepted
among Israeli officials.
"If you are fed from the
crumbs of others according to
their moods, this is very in-
convenient," noted Meir
Amit, former head of the
Mossad, Israel's external in-
telligence agency, who now
heads Israel's General Satel-
lite Corporation. "If you have
your own independent capa-
bility, you can climb one level
higher."
According to Amit, Israel
needed its own surveillance
satellites in order to obtain
the sort of bird's-eye intelli-
gence for which it is depen-
dent on Washington.
A second fact which sup-
ports the theory that Israel is,
in fact, testing surveillance
systems came from space ex-
perts, who noted that the
shallow, elliptical orbit of
Ofek-1 is typical of a surveil-
lance satellite.
But if Ofek-1 has such a
limited life, what long-term
value could-it have for Israeli
intelligence?
According to sources both in
Israel and abroad, Ofek-1 is
the prototype of a revolu-
tionary new surveillance
system — the "pop-up" satel-
lite — which will be launched
at times of peak regional ten-
sion and provide Israel with
high-quality, real-time in-
telligence about its
neighbors.
Israel cannot afford a per-
manent spy-in-the-sky sys-
tem, which would cost about
$1 billion to develop and
would require a sophisticated
back-up network, including a
data analysis center to
monitor and decipher the
huge, constant flow of infor-
mation transmitted home by
the satellites.
Ofek-1, on the other hand,

is tailor-made for Israel's
specific regional interests —
and it cost just $200 million.
Its successors will be cap-
able of being launched at
minimal notice and will be
designed to orbit at low
altitudes, swooping down over
the Arab world every 90
minutes to report on troop
deployments, missile installa-
tions and weapons systems.
Like Ofek-1, they will burn
themselves out after a month,
but military strategists note
that if tensions persist beyond
that period, Israel can simp-
ly "pop up" another Ofek.
This "use-and-lose" dispos-
able breed of satellite, which
Israel reckons it can produce
at a fraction of the cost of its
geo-stationary American
cousin, has generated con-
siderable interest abroad, not
least in Washington.
The United States is
reported to be actively study-
ing the three-stage Savit pro-
pulsion system that put
Ofek-1 into orbit, and if the
Israeli model proves suc-
cessful it is likely that the
United States will develop a
similar system for use when
it requires intensive in-
telligence on a specific region.
The surveillance aspect of
Ofek-1, however, is dwarfed by
its strategic implications.
Whatever messages Ofek-1
is sending back to Tel Aviv,
the message it is delivering to
the Arab world is unambigu-
ous and chilling: If Israel can
design and manufacture a
rocket capable of send a satel-
lite into space, it can also
manufacture ballistic
missiles.
For even more important
than the satellite now blazing
a path through space is the
three-stage solid-fuel rocket
system that was used to blast
it up there.
Military observers note
that if the rocket was tipped

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