New Delhi: A former CIA counter-proliferation officer has claimed that India and Israel once planned a covert operation to bomb Pakistan’s Kahuta nuclear facility, but the strike never took place because then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi refused to approve it.

Richard Barlow, who served in the CIA during the 1980s, told the Hindustan Times that the proposed plan—reportedly discussed in intelligence circles—was aimed at destroying Pakistan’s uranium-enrichment site, which later became central to its nuclear weapons programme. ADVERTISEMENT

“It’s a shame that Indira … didn’t approve it; it would have solved a lot of problems,” Barlow was quoted as saying. He clarified, however, that he was not personally involved in the operation. “I heard about it at some point. But I didn’t get my teeth

See Full Page