From the website:
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www.endtime.com/
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'Little Israel' will not save world from Iran
Iran aims at becoming a global nuclear power with long-range Shihab
missiles that would put Europe and NATO forces in range
—Jerusalem Post
With verbal tensions rising daily between Iran and Israel, Knesset
Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee head Yuval Steinitz said the
West should not expect "little Israel" to take pre-emptive action to
save the world from Iranian nuclear weapons.
It is the free world, led by the United States, that must stand behind
its pledge not to let Iran get the bomb, Steinitz said.
He warned that Iran aims at becoming a global nuclear power with
long-range Shihab missiles that would put Europe and NATO forces in
range.
"This is a problem of the leaders of the civilized world. One
shouldn't expect little Israel to solve a global problem like this,"
Steinitz said in an interview with The Jerusalem Post.
"The United States itself has said that it won't hesitate to use any
means at its disposal to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power.
If, God forbid, the free world, led by the United States, doesn't
stand behind these words, then a dark curtain will descend on the
world raising the possibility of nuclear terror against us and Europe
and NATO," Steinitz said.
"Iran is a totally irresponsible and unpredictable totalitarian regime
that is ready to sacrifice millions of its people for its crazy
ideology," Steinitz said.
His comments came after a week of nearly daily warnings by Iran
against Israel for staging a pre-emptive strike against its widespread
nuclear infrastructure. The rhetoric came amid reports that the IAF
and commandos have completed rehearsals for attacking Iranian nuclear
sites such as the reactor in Bushehr. The reports said Israel would
under no circumstances allow Iran to "go critical."
After taking a back seat in the diplomatic war against Iranian nuclear
endeavors, Israel has again become the loudest voice warning that Iran
is trying to manufacture nuclear weapons in the guise of peaceful
nuclear power industry.
Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom, who is visiting Paris this week, urged
France, Germany, and Britain to intensify their pressure on Iran.
The latest International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report on its
investigation into Iran's nuclear program is due to be released in the
coming weeks. The White House is expecting a strong statement from the
IAEA board and sanctions or nuclear weapons inspections may ensue.
Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi, who has issued daily threats
against an Israeli strike, said Thursday in Manila that Iran is
pushing for a nuclear-free Middle East.
Earlier this month, Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani warned that
Iran retains the option of pre-emptive strikes to prevent an attack on
its nuclear facilities. His warning was followed by a test of an
improved version of its Shihab-3 missile, which is capable of hitting
Israel.
But Steinitz said Israelis have nothing to fear from the Shihab
rockets... yet.
While Israel is within the Shihab's 1,300-kilometer reach, Iran only
has an arsenal of about two dozen, and they can only be armed with
700-kilogram conventional warheads.
"The missiles are very inaccurate, and are completely ineffective
against a military target or the nuclear reactor in Dimona," Steinitz
said. "We shall intercept most of them with our Arrow missiles."
Steinitz maintained that Iran is developing its Shihabs solely for the
purpose of arming them with nuclear warheads.
"Conventional wisdom says you don't develop a missile with a range
greater than 1,000 km. for conventional warheads. This is one of the
signs that they are aiming to achieve nuclear capacity in the future,"
Steinitz added.
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