Report: Israel can cross Saudi air space

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, June 12 (UPI) -- Saudi Arabia has given the go-ahead to Israel to send bombers through a strip of its air space to bomb nuclear facilities in Iran, defense sources say.

Tests have even been held to guarantee Saudi air defenses would not be activated against Israeli bombers, The Times in London reported Saturday.

"The Saudis have given their permission for the Israelis to pass over and they will look the other way," a U.S. defense source in the Middle East told the Times. "They have already done tests to make sure their own jets aren't scrambled and no one gets shot down. This has all been done with the agreement of the (U.S.) State Department."

Allowing the bombers to cross northern Saudi Arabia could make the difference between success and failure, providing a shorter route, the report said.

Saudi Arabia and Israel do not have diplomatic relations. But both governments dislike and distrust the current regime in Iran, the report said.