The “Samson Option” (or Samson doctrine) is a term describing Israel’s alleged strategy of last-resort, massive nuclear retaliation against its enemies if the nation faces total annihilation.

Named after the biblical figure Samson, who destroyed a Philistine temple to kill his captors and himself, it signals that if Israel is defeated, it will bring down its enemies with it.

Key Details of the Samson Option:

Purpose: It functions as an ultimate deterrence mechanism, aiming to convince adversaries that any existential threat against Israel will result in a catastrophic, doomsday scenario.

Origin: The concept emerged during the 1960s, attributed to early Israeli leaders like Ben-Gurion, Peres, and Dayan, to guarantee survival.

“Nuclear Ambiguity”: Israel has never officially acknowledged the existence of this policy or its nuclear arsenal, maintaining a strategy of strategic ambiguity, though international observers estimate it possesses around 80 nuclear warheads.

Scope: It is believed to involve potential targeting of civilian centers in non-nuclear adversary nations if Israel is overrun.

Terminology: Popularized by author Seymour Hersh in his 1991 book The Samson Option: Israel’s Nuclear Arsenal and American Foreign Policy, it is a key focus of analysis, especially regarding threats in the Middle East.

The doctrine is largely considered a theoretical, last-resort approach and not a policy for active combat scenarios.