Good read from the New Yorker written by Seymour M. Hersh (HT Marmot) about the Sept. 2007 bombing of a Syrian something-or-other by Israeli war planes. Oh, and it also involved North Korea building or shipping some-kind-of-something.

You might remember this story stuck around in the news for a couple months, but nothing all that conclusive was reported and all the involved parties withheld comment. Likewise, Hersh’s piece doesn’t provide a definitive answer — and in fact, raises some more questions.

Whatever was under construction, with North Korean help, it apparently had little to do with agriculture—or with nuclear reactors—but much to do with Syria’s defense posture, and its military relationship with North Korea. And that, perhaps, was enough to silence the Syrian government after the September 6th bombing.