The INS Rahav and its crew. The submarine reached Israel’s port in Haifa on Tuesday. Photo: Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Peter Lerner.

JNS.org – Israeli leaders on Tuesday celebrated the arrival of the Jewish state’s newest Dolphin-class submarine, the INS Rahav, in a ceremony at a naval base in Haifa.

“Our submarine fleet serves as a deterrent to our enemies who seek our destruction,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. “They need to know that Israel is capable of hitting with very great force anyone who tries to harm us.

The NIS 1.6 billion ($406 million) submarine, which was built and partially financed by Germany, is the fifth Dolphin-class submarine delivered to Israel, joining the Tanin, Tekuma, Leviathan, and Dolphin in Haifa.

Netanyahu thanked German Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Joachim Gauck for their “great contribution to fortifying our naval force through supplying these submarines and through outer important means we are discussing.”

According to reports, the Dolphin class submarines are capable of carrying a nuclear weapon, giving Israel second-strike capability—a country’s assured ability to respond to a nuclear attack with powerful nuclear retaliation against the attacker.