- 8 nov 2011
US spending American dollars on Israel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrvlBx2Nf6A
A Vietnam War veteran says that economically-ailing United States has unconditionally pursued Israeli interests in the Middle East region.
In an exclusive interview with Press TV, Phil Tourney, author, Vietnam War veteran and USS Liberty survivor, tells us more about the US-Israel relationship.
Press TV: This will be the largest and more significant joint exercise in the ally's history in which the notorious iron dome system will be tested as well. What do you make of this further militarization of Israel in what many call a very volatile region?
Tourney: I think very, very little of it. I must say this; I am a USS Liberty survivor that was attacked on June 8, 1967, where 34 of my shipmates were slaughtered by the government of Israel in a premeditated attack. And they knew exactly who we were. They knew exactly where we were going. We were in international waters
The government of the United States covered up this heinous, heinous attack that murdered 34 of my shipmates, wounded 137 others including myself, and wounded our ship so badly that it had over 850 cannon-rocket holes in it, over 5,000 armor piercing bullets in it, and a 40 by 40 foot torpedo put in it.
As the Israelis shot our only three life rafts out of the water, there were to be no survivors. And they shot at our firefighters...
I must say this, ma'am, I am an American and I love my country just as you love your country. And it's my duty as an American to warn the world about the neo-con Zionist's threat that poses a great evil on this country and all countries. And I must also add, go to [www.aipac.org], it is a filter that puts out garbage against all countries.
With the end in saying this, and I hope I get a few more minutes, is that Israel is no friend of America. No friend of America!
If they can get by with murdering 34 Americans on the high seas doing nothing but what our orders were to do, and then the American government covers up for it, it's just like your father or mother would shoot you in the back of the head, and then they would go get the people that shot you in the back of the head and get them out of jail. Does that sound fair to you ma'am?
Press TV: But I'd like to get back to the story at hand now. What do you make of this further militarization of Israel in what many call a volatile region?
Tourney: What I make of it is that it's US-Israel's plan for the largest war games. And this is the largest war games between two allies that I've ever heard of. These aren't war games. This is real war. And I do not want to see any more deaths. Not any deaths.
We've already fought two wars for Israel, and we're still fighting them for Israel, in Iraq and Iran. It's despicable! We're losing American blood and treasure. This country's broke, and we can't afford it no more.
Israel is living high and high and high. They have more money, more missiles. If they say they have 200 nuclear weapons, they've got a thousand of them, I guarantee it.
Press TV: Israel is now developing the Arrow 3 with the US Department of Defense. Now, the Americans will be shouldering the bulk of the project's financing. Wouldn't this money be put to better use at this time of economic uncertainty, in your opinion?
Tourney: Absolutely. This money could be used to pay off our national debt. This money could be used to bring our troops home from fighting these wars for Israel. This money could be used for many uses: hospitals, schools, people that are around on the streets, and foreign aid for anybody except for Israel.
I think Israel does not need foreign aid; they've got plenty of money. They've got plenty of nuclear weapons, enough to destroy the world - and they said that over and over again.
No, this could be used in so many different ways. The money does not need to be spent on Israel or their warning to Iran that they're going to wipe you off the earth.
http://edition.presstv.ir/detail/209073.html 31 mar 2012, 23:31 , Respect -
Maria 8 nov 2011
Russia, China Warn US Against Attacking Iran
Lavrov Says Attacking Iran Would Be 'Serious Mistake'
Faced with a round of threats and speculations of an impending war so shrill that it has sent oil prices soaring, Russia and China were quick today to caution the United States against launching an attack on Iran.
Attacking Iran would be a “very serious mistake fraught with unpredictable consequences,” warned Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, while China expressed concern that the threats were harming the prospects of diplomacy.
They are just the latest in a growing chorus of nations to express concerns about starting another major war. Germany has also said they oppose such a move.
A growing number of US officials past and present have expressed a preference for launching a military attack on Iran soon, with an IAEA report alleging some vague allegations about computer simulations serving as the latest pretext.
Israeli officials have also been hyping the prospect of launching an attack on Iran themselves, with President Shimon Peres insisted the war was “more likely” than any sort of diplomatic solution. Israeli military officials are said to prefer an attack before winter.
http://fwd4.me/0gRV 31 mar 2012, 23:32 , Respect -
Maria 8 nov 2011
'Not even 500 Israelis will be killed'
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak
Israel's Defense Minister Ehud Barak has dismissed as "delusional" recent reports regarding the increasing possibility of Tel Aviv launching a military strike against Iran.
“Israel had not yet decided to embark on any operation," Barak said on Tuesday.
"War is not a picnic. We want a picnic. We don't want a war," Reuters quoted Barak as saying.
Barak also criticized reports suggesting that as many as 100,000 Israelis could be killed if Iran attacks Israel in retaliation against Tel Aviv aggression.
“There will not be 100,000 casualties, and not 50,000 casualties, not 5,000 casualties and not even 500,” Barak said.
Referring to the upcoming International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report about Tehran's nuclear program, he said, "We are probably at the last opportunity for coordinated, international, lethal sanctions that will force Iran to stop."
The Israeli minister, however, expressed doubt that the UN Security Council would impose tough new sanctions against Tehran in response to the IAEA report, which is expected to reveal supposedly new information about Iran's nuclear program.
Israeli President Shimon Peres said on November 6 that an attack on Iran was becoming increasingly more likely.
Meanwhile Israeli media reported last week that Barak and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were trying to garner support in the cabinet to launch a military attack on Iran.
The United States and Israel have repeatedly threatened Tehran with the "option" of an attack based on the allegation that Tehran may be pursuing a covert military agenda.
Tehran has categorically refuted the West's allegations, saying as a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and a member of the IAEA, it has the right to develop and acquire nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.
Iranian officials have promised a crushing response to any military strike against the country, warning that any such measure could result in a war that would spread beyond the Middle East.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/209063.html 31 mar 2012, 23:32 , Respect -
Maria
8 nov 2011
Rice says US must bring Iran govt. down
Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
Former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says Washington must never take the military option off the table and do everything in its power to bring the Iranian government down.
Rice told This Week political affairs program of ABC television network on Sunday that the US should consider even tougher penalties against Iran's government and “be doing everything we can to bring it down.”
She stressed that the US should never take the option of military force off the table when it comes to dealing with Iran, AP reported.
The US and its allies have intensified their anti-Iran rhetoric ahead of the IAEA report on the country's nuclear program.
On November 4, Israeli President Shimon Peres said that an attack on Iran was becoming increasingly more likely.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the Knesset on October 31 in an effort to garner support for a military attack on Iran over its nuclear program.
Supported by Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, Netanyahu argued that Israel should proceed with efforts to encourage the West to exert more economic and political pressure on Iran.
He also emphasized that any action against Iran should be carried out in full coordination with the United States.
Israel, which is widely believed to possess over 300 atomic warheads, along with the US accuses Tehran of pursuing a military nuclear program.
Under pressure from Washington and Tel Aviv, the UN Security Council has imposed four rounds of sanctions against Tehran. Washington and the European Union have also adopted unilateral measures against Iran's energy sector.
While Israel refuses to allow inspections of its nuclear facilities or to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty based on its policy of nuclear ambiguity, Iran is a signatory to the NPT and has been subjected to snap International Atomic Energy Agency inspections due to its policy of nuclear transparency.
Israel has recently test fired a new long-range missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads. The test was carried out at the Palmahim air base in central Israel.
This three-stage Jericho-3 missile which is capable of delivering a 750-kilo warhead to a distance, is estimated to have a range of up to 10,000 kilometers.
Paradoxically, the new nuke-capable missile, which can target many parts of the globe, is not considered a threat in the eyes of the West.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/208873.html 31 mar 2012, 23:32 , Respect -
Maria 8 nov 2011
Russia accuses Israel of using 'dangerous rhetoric' against Iran
President Dmitry Medvedev says threatening atmosphere being created by Israel, and that now is the time to 'take a deep breath and open talks'.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev accused Israel on Tuesday of using "dangerous rhetoric" that could lead to a war with Iran, amid rising tensions over the latter's nuclear program.
Speaking in Berlin after meeting his German counterpart Christian Wulff, Medvedev said a threatening atmosphere was being created by the Israelis, as media speculation abounded that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak were considering a military option against Iran.
"The threat of a military strike could lead to a major war," he warned, adding that it was now vital to calm the situation, "take a deep breath and open talks."
Moscow had repeatedly urged Tehran to prove to the world that its nuclear research was purely peaceful in its objectives. "Unfortunately there hasn't been any movement in this direction," said Medvedev, who was later to attend a ceremony to open an undersea gas pipeline through the Baltic Sea.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned Monday that a strike against Iran would be a grave mistake with unpredictable consequences: "This would be a very serious mistake fraught with unpredictable consequences," he said.
Defense Minister Barak played down speculation Tuesday that Israel intended to strike Iranian nuclear facilities, saying it had not decided to embark on any military operation.
"War is not a picnic. We want a picnic. We don't want a war," Barak told Israel Radio ahead of the release this week of an International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA] report on Iran's nuclear activity. "[Israel] had not yet decided to embark on any operation."
But he said Israel had to prepare for "uncomfortable situations" and ultimately bore responsibility for its own security. All options to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions should
remain open, he said.
The IAEA report is widely expected to strengthen suspicions that Iran is seeking to produce nuclear weapons despite its statements that its uranium enrichment programme is aimed at power generation.
"I estimate that it will be quite a harsh report ... it does not surprise Israel, we have been dealing with these issues for years," Barak said. "We are probably at the last opportunity for coordinated, international, lethal sanctions that will force Iran to stop."
The International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA] is set to issue a report this week on Iran's nuclear activity. Western nuclear experts have told Haaretz, in anticipation of the IAEA report, that Iran will be ready to build a nuclear bomb within a few months if it desires.
Other experts, who have seen intelligence used in the compilation of the latest report, have said that Tehran already has the know-how, the technological means and the materials needed to put an atom bomb together within short order.
These experts have concluded that nuclear weapons engineers from Russia, Pakistan and North Korea have been assisting Iranian scientists in their efforts to reach nuclear capability. Haaretz published similar information last week, reporting that experts have said that Iran could carry out underground nuclear tests quite soon if it wants to.
France this week also warned Israel against taking a military options, saying it was seeking to harden sanctions instead.
http://fwd4.me/0gQO 31 mar 2012, 23:32 , Respect -
Maria 8 nov 2011
Barak: Israel has not yet decided on military operation against Iran
Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Tuesday played down speculation that Israel intended to strike Iranian nuclear facilities, saying it had not decided to embark on any military operation.
“War is not a picnic. We want a picnic. We don’t want a war,” Barak told Israel Radio ahead of the release this week of an International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA] report on Iran’s nuclear activity.
“[Israel] had not yet decided to embark on any operation,” he said, dismissing Israeli media speculation that he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had chosen that option.
But he said Israel had to prepare for “uncomfortable situations” and ultimately bore responsibility for its own security. All options to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions should remain open, he said.
The IAEA report is widely expected to strengthen suspicions that Iran is seeking to produce nuclear weapons despite its statements that its uranium enrichment programme is aimed at power generation.
"I estimate that it will be quite a harsh report ... it does not surprise Israel, we have been dealing with these issues for years," Barak said. "We are probably at the last opportunity for coordinated, international, lethal sanctions that will force Iran to stop."
Western nuclear experts have told Haaretz, in anticipation of the IAEA report, that Iran will be ready to build a nuclear bomb within a few months if it desires.
Other experts, who have seen intelligence used in the compilation of the latest report, have said that Tehran already has the know-how, the technological means and the materials needed to put an atom bomb together within short order.
These experts have concluded that nuclear weapons engineers from Russia, Pakistan and North Korea have been assisting Iranian scientists in their efforts to reach nuclear capability. Haaretz published similar information last week, reporting that experts have said that Iran could carry out underground nuclear tests quite soon if it wants to.
The foreign ministers of Russia and France have warned this week that an Israeli military strike against Iran would cause irreparable damage.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday that such a strike against Iran would be a grave mistake with unpredictable consequences: "This would be a very serious mistake fraught with unpredictable consequences," he said.
French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said his country was "very worried" about the potential militarization of Iran's nuclear program, but opposes any strike against the Islamic Republic because it would destabilize the region. He said earlier this week that France supported the hardening of sanctions against Iran.
Earlier this week, Haaretz learned that U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta did not get a clear commitment from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Barak that Israel would not take action against Iranian nuclear facilities without coordinating any such operation with the United States.
According to American officials who were briefed about the visit Panetta made a month ago to Israel, the two Israeli leaders only answered Panetta's questions regarding Israel's intentions toward Iran in a general manner.
Panetta arrived in Israel on October 3 and, in addition to Netanyahu and Barak, also met with Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Benny Gantz and senior members of the IDF General Staff. The U.S. defense secretary's visit came against the backdrop of a sense among members of the American administration that they didn't clearly understand where Israel was headed with regard to the entire subject of the threat from Iran.
Panetta raised the Iranian issue in his talks in Israel with both Netanyahu and Barak. He sought not only to hear about Israel's intentions but also to underline that the U.S. was interested in full coordination with Israel on the issue of the Iranian nuclear threat. The American defense secretary hinted that the Americans did not want to be surprised by Israel. For their parts, however, Netanyahu and Barak avoided providing a clear response, answering vaguely and in general terms.
http://fwd4.me/0gPv 31 mar 2012, 23:32 , Respect -
Maria 8 nov 2011
White House: Iran nuclear report will echo US concerns
By David Alexander and Tabassum Zakaria
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- A UN agency report this week is expected to "echo and reinforce" US concerns about Iran's nuclear program and Washington will work to increase pressure on Tehran to abandon any atomic weapons ambitions, the White House said on Monday.
White House spokesman Jay Carney downplayed questions about the possibility of military action targeting Iran's nuclear program and said the United States was focused on continued diplomacy to convince Tehran to meet international obligations.
"You can be sure that we will continue to work to pressure Iran, to isolate Iran," Carney told a White House briefing. "And we know from our own analysis as well as what the president of Iran recently said that those efforts are having an impact."
The International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN's nuclear watchdog, is expected to release a report this week that will detail research in Iran possibly geared toward developing nuclear weapons, adding fuel to Western concerns about a program Tehran says is for energy production.
"We certainly expect it to echo and reinforce what we've been saying about Iran's behavior and its failure to live up to its international obligations," Carney said. "It will, I'm sure, echo our concern about Iran's nuclear program."
Diplomats have said the IAEA report will shed light on highly technical and complex scientific work in Iran that could be related to producing nuclear weapons, but it is not likely to reveal "smoking gun" proof of an intent to make arms.
The report is expected to include fresh evidence of research and other activities with no ready explanation other than weapons work, including studies linked to the development of an atomic bomb trigger and computer modeling of a nuclear weapon.
It will expand on concerns voiced by the IAEA in recent years over Western intelligence allegations that Iran had linked projects to process uranium, test explosives and modify a missile cone for a nuclear payload, the diplomats said.
Nuclear trigger
David Albright, a former IAEA official who now leads the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security, said evidence showed Iran had the information it needed to create a nuclear weapon.
Albright said he had not seen the IAEA report, but was familiar with a lot of the underlying information.
He said Iran had obtained designs for an R265 generator, a device used to initiate a nuclear chain reaction with precisely timed explosions.
A Ukrainian scientist who worked in the Soviet nuclear weapons complex helped Iran with the trigger, which initiates the explosives in a very distinct way, Albright said.
"Iran could never have done that on its own," he said.
Iran has not mastered the technology, "but they know how to do it and they are learning how to do it," Albright said.
"I don't think they've mastered it in the sense that they could launch it on a ... missile," he said. "But they certainly know enough to be able to build a nuclear weapon so they could test it underground."
Albright estimated Iran was about a year from having a nuclear device if it decided to move forward and build one.
US intelligence officials in 2007 estimated with high confidence that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in the fall of 2003 and expressed moderate confidence that Tehran had not restarted the program as of mid-2007.
However, they expressed moderate-to-high confidence that Tehran was keeping its options open to develop a nuclear weapon.
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper told Congress earlier this year that Iran still appeared to be "keeping open the option to develop nuclear weapons," partly by continuing to develop the necessary capabilities.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=435486 31 mar 2012, 23:32 , Respect -
Maria 8 nov 2011
Is Israel Hoping for a US Attack on Iran?
-
by Pierre Klochendler - Preceding the U.N. atomic watchdog’s report on Iran’s nuclear quest, a flurry of reports about Israel increasingly tilting toward preventive military action against Iran highlights U.S. military support of Israel but tests its influence over its ally.
On Tuesday, the International Atomic Energy Agency is expected to report that Iran has carried out experiments for developing nuclear weapons including explosions and computer simulations of explosions.
Either public diplomacy or policy, psychological warfare intended to advocate harsher international sanctions or preparation for international endorsement of military action, the wave of speculations raised even more speculations as President Shimon Peres addressed the media reports.
Appearing on Channel Two’s prime-time news on Friday, the president urged “the other nations of the world to act. … It’s time to stand behind the promise that was made to us, to fulfill their responsibility, whether that means serious sanctions or a military operation.
“It may well be that comments on the topic serve their own function,” he added elliptically.
Peres didn’t depart from the customary all-options-are-on-the-table shared by Israeli and U.S. spokespeople. “No decision was made,” he cautioned.
Yet it’s left the international community, particularly the U.S., wondering whether Israel is on the brink of deciding in favor of such a unilateral attack.
The frenzy was ignited a week earlier by Nahum Barnea, Israel’s foremost columnist, in the mass- circulation newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth: “Have the prime minister and defense minister settled on a decision, just between the two of them, to launch a military attack on the nuclear facilities in Iran?”
Was Barnea’s question mere prescience, or was he all too well-informed? Next, the media was abuzz with conjecture of a potential military action on Iran.
Hence, the report by the liberal daily Haaretz that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been busy sounding members of his inner cabinet about such strike.
“It’s best not to talk about how complex and intricate this strike is,” Eli Yishai, interior minister and head of the religious Shas Party, confided to a group of supporters. “This operation leaves me sleepless.”
The somber, somewhat obscure confession was meant to instill gravity among his fellow Israelis. And there might have been an ulterior motive — to instill urgency among not only IAEA, but more specifically U.S., officials.
Meanwhile, the Israeli air force concluded comprehensive drills on long-range attacks at the Italian NATO base Decimomannu (Sardinia).
According to Barnea, the question of whether to attack or not to attack Iran “distresses foreign governments, which find it difficult to understand what’s happening here.
“On one hand, there are mounting rumors of an Israeli move that will change the face of the Middle East and possibly seal Israel’s fate for generations to come; on the other, there’s a total absence of public debate. The issue of whether to attack Iran is at the bottom of the Israeli discourse,” Barnea remarked.
Indeed, U.S. officials noted “a substantial reduction in Israeli pronouncements” on the issue, “both public but also private through diplomatic and defense channels,” according to U.S. sources cited in Haaretz.
So, when Defense Secretary Leon Panetta came to Israel a month ago, it appears that the visit’s backdrop stemmed from a sense that the U.S. administration didn’t have a clue where Israel was headed vis-à-vis Iran.
Yet, Panetta received no clear commitment — either from Netanyahu or from his counterpart, Ehud Barak — that Israel would refrain from attacking Iran without prior coordination with the U.S.
The two Israeli leaders were vague about Israel’s intentions, as if Iran’s nuclear ambivalence (in some simulation of Israel’s own nuclear ambiguity) had influenced them to shroud their intentions in uncertainty.
But the evasiveness may simply have been aimed at pressuring not only Iran, but also the U.S.
The issue of tight coordination on Iran lay at the heart of the relations between the two countries.
When in 1981 Prime Minister Menachem Begin gave the green light to the Israeli bombing of the Iraqi nuclear reactor at Osirak, he did it without giving advance warning to President Ronald Reagan. Israel’s defense establishment was consulted, but Begin overrode their opposition.
In his memoir, Decision Points, published a year ago, former President George W. Bush recalls the Israeli airstrike in September 2007 on the Syrian nuclear reactor near Deir e-Zour. He writes: “Prime Minister [Ehud] Olmert hadn’t asked for a green light, and I hadn’t given one. He had done what he believed was necessary to protect Israel.”
But Syria is not Iran.
Besides, some in Netanyahu’s inner cabinet believe that if a military action is a necessity, Israel will be better off if the U.S. launches it.
Do the bilateral relations suffer from lack of mutual trust, especially as Israel has, for the past three years, failed to engage in meaningful peace talks with the Palestinian Authority?
Is Israel becoming an embarrassment, or worse, a liability, for U.S. interests in the region, with the U.N. ready to endorse Palestinian statehood, but the U.S. ready to use its veto power at the Security Council?
Not necessarily.
The depth of U.S. commitment to Israel’s security has never been demonstrated so forcefully as during President Barack Obama’s administration, though Israel didn’t meet the presidential hope that in assuaging Israel’s security fears, Netanyahu would become more inclined to overcome his reticence vis-à-vis the Palestinians.
A demonstration of this commitment could be perceived in the announced “largest” and “most significant” joint maneuver in the two allies’ history.
Speaking to the pro-Israeli Washington Institute for Near East Policy, U.S. Assistant Secretary for Political-Military Affairs Andrew Shapiro declared, “Our security relationship with Israel is broader, deeper and more intense than ever before,” adding that Israel’s military edge was a “top priority” for the U.S.
“We support Israel because it is in our national interests to do so,” Shapiro emphasized, echoing a recent report by the Washington Institute titled “Israel: A Strategic Asset for the United States.”
“If Israel were weaker, its enemies would be bolder. This would make broader conflict more likely, which would be catastrophic to American interests in the region,” Shapiro added.
Maria 9 nov 2011
IAEA report a historic mistake, Iran says
The Iranian ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Ali Asghar Soltanieh
The Iranian ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Ali Asghar Soltanieh, has criticized the agency's latest report on Iran, calling it a historic mistake, Press TV reports.
Soltanieh told Press TV on Tuesday that the IAEA report is unbalanced, unprofessional, and politically motivated.
He stated that the IAEA has taken an unprofessional approach, adding that neither the agency nor its director has the right to disseminate false information about any member state.
Soltanieh noted that this historic mistake disturbed the “conducive environment” that Iran had created through visits by IAEA officials to Iranian nuclear sites and facilities, saying, “This has created difficulties, and of course, it gives excuses to the enemies.”
IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano's latest report on Iran's nuclear activities was distributed to the 35 members of the Board of Governors of the agency on Tuesday evening, ahead of the seasonal meeting of the board, which is scheduled to be held in Vienna from November 17 to 18.
Soltanieh added that the report repeats old charges that the Islamic Republic proved were fabricated in a comprehensive 117-page response presented to the IAEA four years ago.
“Almost all of the items which have been reflected in the annex are obsolete and repetitive, and we have discussed them before,” he said.
The United States, Israel, and some of their allies accuse Tehran of pursuing military objectives in its nuclear program.
Yet, as a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and a member of the IAEA, Iran has every right to develop and acquire nuclear technology meant for peaceful purposes.
In addition, the IAEA has conducted numerous inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities but has never found any evidence indicating that Iran's civilian nuclear program has been diverted to nuclear weapons production.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/209099.html 31 mar 2012, 23:32 , Respect -
Maria 12 nov 2011
'Israel misguided IAEA on Iran report'
Political analyst Gareth Porter
Israeli intelligence agencies have provided false information to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that shapes the controversial parts of the agency's report on Iran's nuclear activities, a political analyst tells Press TV.
Gareth Porter said the "critical information" used in the IAEA's latest report was provided by the Israeli intelligence agencies with the purpose of pushing through with "a new regime of sanctions against Tehran."
"Israeli Foreign Ministry and intelligence officials told journalists Douglas Frantz and Catherine Collins about the special unit of Mossad dedicated to that task at the very time the fraudulent documents were being produced," Porter added.
International Atomic Energy Agency' Director General Yukiya Amano's latest report on Iran's nuclear activities was given to the 35 members of the Board of Governors on November 8.
In its report, the IAEA claimed that Iran had engaged in activities related to developing nuclear weapons before 2003, adding that these activities "may still be ongoing."
"Careful examination of the alleged studies documents has revealed inconsistencies and other anomalies that give evidence of fraud. But the IAEA, the United States and its allies in the IAEA continue to treat the documents as though there were no question about their authenticity," Porter said.
Among instances of false accusations in the report, Porter pointed to a repeated claim that "former Soviet nuclear weapons scientist Vyacheslav Danilenko" had helped Iran construct a detonation system that could be used for a nuclear weapon.
Porter argued that Danilenko is not a nuclear weapons scientist but he is one of the prominent nanodiamonds specialists in the world, whose real identity the IAEA "never bothered" to check.
Iran has dismissed the IAEA report as "unbalanced, unprofessional and prepared with political motivation and under political pressure by mostly the United States."
http://edition.presstv.ir/detail/209671.html 31 mar 2012, 23:32 , Respect -
Maria 16 nov 2011
Israel, Arab nations to attend rare round of nuclear talks next week
Iran has yet to say whether it will take part in the meeting to be hosted by the IAEA in Vienna; meeting seen as symbolically significant in bringing together regional fores at the same venue to start a dialogue.
Israel and Arab states plan to attend a rare round of talks next week on efforts to free the world of nuclear weapons but Iran has yet to say whether it will take part in the meeting in Vienna, diplomats said on Wednesday.
The Nov. 21-22 forum, hosted by the International Atomic Energy Agency, is seen as symbolically significant in seeking to bring regional foes together at the same venue and start a dialogue, even though no concrete outcome is expected.
If conducted smoothly with toned-down rhetoric on both sides, it could send a positive signal ahead of a planned international conference next year on ridding the Middle East of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction.
"It is a good opportunity for everybody to sit and talk but I don't think it is going to achieve a tangible result," a Western diplomat said.
Israel is widely believed to harbour the Middle East's only nuclear arsenal, drawing frequent Arab and Iranian condemnation.
Israel and the United States regard Iran as the region's main proliferation threat, accusing Iran of seeking to develop a nuclear weapons capability in secret. An IAEA report last week
added independent weight to those allegations.
Convened by IAEA chief Yukiya Amano, next week's discussions will focus on the experiences of regions in the world which have set up Nuclear-Weapons-Free Zones (NWFZ), including Africa and Latin America, and their possible relevance for the Middle East.
IAEA member states decided in 2000 that such a meeting should be held but until this year the parties involved were unable to agree on the agenda and other issues.
All 151 IAEA member countries have been invited to the talks, to be chaired by senior Norwegian diplomat Jan Petersen, but participating envoys from the region will be in focus.
Nuclear meeting in Finland
"The forum will consider the experience of five NWFZs and two regional verification arrangements and discuss the potential relevance of such experience to the creation of a NWFZ in the Middle East," the IAEA said in a statement this week.
Diplomats said Israel and Arab states had accepted the invitation but that there had as yet been no word from Iran, which in September said it saw no justification for such a meeting now and took a swipe at arch-enemy Israel.
Israel, the only Middle East country outside the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), has never confirmed or denied having nuclear weapons under a policy of ambiguity to deter
numerically superior foes.
It says it would only join the NPT if there is a comprehensive Middle East peace with its longtime Arab and Iranian adversaries. If it signed the 1970 treaty, Israel would have to renounce nuclear weaponry.
Arab states, backed by Iran, say Israel's stance poses a threat to regional peace and stability.
Last month, the United Nations said Finland had agreed to host a potentially divisive international meeting in 2012 to discuss the possible creation of a Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction.
The idea for such a conference came from Egypt, which pushed for a meeting with all states in the Middle East to negotiate a treaty that would establish a nuclear arms-free zone.
U.S. commitment will be key to the success or failure of next year's talks, Western diplomats say, as it is the only state that can persuade Israel to attend.
http://fwd4.me/0guS 31 mar 2012, 23:32 , Respect -
Maria 22 nov 2011
Israel says NO to nuclear transparency
Israel has once again refused to acknowledge international calls for transparency in its covert nuclear program during a meeting held by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
During the nuclear-free Middle East conference in Vienna, deputy head of Israel's Atomic Energy Commission David Danieli said on Monday that Tel Aviv would not begin talks on the issue.
"Experience shows that such a process can only be launched when normal, peaceful relations exist in the region, when the threat perception of all regional members is low," he was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.
"Political instability, open hostilities, deep mistrust and noncompliance with international obligations are too common in many parts of the Middle East region," he argued.
This is while participants at the gathering condemned Tel Aviv's response, saying Israel's massive nuclear arsenal and total lack of transparency will make the goal of a nuclear-free Middle East completely impossible.
Syria said Israel is posing a "grave and serious threat" through its undeclared atomic arsenal.
Last year, the 189 members of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) decided to convene a UN-sponsored conference on establishing a Middle East nuclear-free zone in 2012. This year's meeting was an incentive for most of the nations to meet with Israel for the exploratory Vienna talks.
Despite international condemnation, Tel Aviv still remains unclear whether it will even attend the 2012 talks.
Israel is considered to be the only possessor of nuclear weapons in the Middle East. It refuses to allow inspections of its nuclear facilities or to join the NPT based on its policy of nuclear ambiguity.
According to a recent survey conducted by the Berlin-based Friedrich Ebert Foundation, more than 50 percent of European people believe Israel is the most serious threat to global security.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/211504.html 31 mar 2012, 23:33 , Respect -
Maria 1 dec 2011
'We'll give up nukes if Iran does same'
Israel's nuclear reactor Dimona
Saban Center survey shows 65% of Israeli Jews willing to give up nuclear weapons if Islamic Republic waives its own program; prefer to see nuclear-free Middle East.
WASHINGTON – Two thirds of Israeli Jews are willing to give up Israel's nuclear weapons in return for Iran giving up its own program, a survey published on Thursday claimed.
According to the findings, released by Saban Center for Middle East Policy, 65% of Israeli Jews preferred if neither Israel nor Iran to held nuclear arms, and opted for a nuclear-free Middle East. In contrast, some 19% of repondents said they want both countries to have nuclear capabilities.
Asked a series of questions about the Israeli-Arab conflict, some two thirds of respondents said the government must promote a comprehensive peace plan, based on 1967 borders, with a demilitarized Palestinian state. Some 71% said they agreed with a definition of Israel as "the homeland of the Jewish people and all its citizens."
The survey was published ahead of the Saban Forum that will open in Washington on Thursday, and is expected to draw senior American and Israeli officials including US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, Opposition chairwoman Tzipi Livni, and Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.
The survey also indicated that the Israeli public is split over pursuing a military option in the Islamic Republic – Some 43% of Israeli Jewish respondents said they support a military strike on Iranian nuclear facilities, while 41% opposed it. Among the Israeli Arab public, 68% opposed military action while only 4% supported it.
Asked whether they believed Tehran had an intention to develop nuclear weapons, 90% of Israeli Jews responded affirmatively, while only 47% of Israeli Arabs thought the same.
However, among the Israeli Arab population, 48% believed that a nuclear Iran will have negative influence on the Middle East, compared with only 17% that said it will have a positive affect.
Surprisingly, when asked about their satisfaction with US President Barack Obama, most Israelis, who held a negative view of the president in 2010 (51% compared with 41%) seemed to have changed their minds.
At least 54% of Israeli Jews held a positive view of Obama, while only 39% expressed a negative view. However, 39% of respondents also said they were disappointed with Obama's policy in the Middle East, while 22% said they were encouraged by it and 35% expressed no stance.
http://fwd4.me/0htc
Report: Israelis willing to give up nuclear arms
TEL AVIV, Israel (Ma'an) -- A survey of Israeli Jews released Thursday shows that most of them would be willing to give up Israel's secret nuclear program is Iran stopped its own, media reports said.
The Saban Center for Middle East Policy found that 65 percent of Israeli Jews preferred neither Israel not Iran having nuclear arms, according to findings published by Israel's Ynet news site.
Nineteen percent said both countries should have nuclear arms, the report said.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=441009 31 mar 2012, 23:33 , Respect -
Maria 2 dec 2011
Poll: Israeli Jews want no nuclear weapons
WASHINGTON (AFP) -- A strong majority of Israeli Jews support a Middle East where neither Iran nor Israel nor any other country has nuclear weapons, according to a poll published on Thursday.
"By a ratio of two to one, Israelis support an agreement that would make the Middle East a nuclear weapon free zone, including Iran and Israel," said the poll published by the Saban Center for Middle East Policy.
They advocated "a system of full inspections of all facilities where nuclear components are built or stored," according to the poll carried out by the center at the Brookings Institution think tank.
"Given a choice of two options, one where both Israel and Iran have nuclear weapons and one where neither has them, 65 percent of Israeli Jews support the latter while only 19 percent support the former," it added.
It also said that 90 percent of Israeli Jews believe that Iran will eventually build atomic weapons.
"Israeli Jews are equally divided on attacking Iranian nuclear facilities, with 43 percent supporting and 41 percent opposing an attack," according to the survey.
But it said 68 percent of the Arabs who make up nearly 20 percent of Israel's population would oppose an attack on Iran's nuclear sites, while four percent support it.
The international community has imposed heavy sanctions on Iran to curb what it fears is a program to build atomic weapons. Iran denies the charges, insisting its nuclear program is purely for peaceful purposes.
Israel itself is widely held to possess several hundred nuclear missiles but has a policy of neither confirming nor denying that.
The poll surveyed 1,010 people in living in Israel in November this year.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=441270 31 mar 2012, 23:33 , Respect -
Maria 13 dec 2011
Israel's Dimona risks uncovered
A court case on radiation exposure in Israel's Dimona nuclear plant has revealed that health damages at the Israeli nuclear site were “covered up.”
Dr. Dan Litai, an Israeli safety engineer who gave a testimony to the Petah Tikvah District Court on Monday, said that no department was tasked with assessing the levels of internal radiation contamination at the Negev Reactor until the late 1990s.
The Israeli safety expert also testified that workers at the Negev Nuclear Reactor Center at the Dimona nuclear plant underwent “superficial and inadequate” radiation exposure tests, a Ynet report revealed on December 12.
The court was tasked to determine whether former employees of the reactor should be recognized as the victims of work-related accidents after they developed cancer.
In mid 1990s, 44 employees of the Negev and the Soreq Nuclear Reactor Centers filed a lawsuit against the nuclear plants. Some of the plaintiffs have died since then.
"Only if the employee's external radiation levels were irregular, we would run further testing. Looking back, this is something we should have done, but we didn't," said Dr. Litai.
Earlier last week, head of radiation safety department of the Soreq Nuclear Center presented a similar testimony to the court, saying the cancer victims of the Soreq Center could have been spared if they had undergone preventive radiation exposure tests.
"I worked with materials whose nature was unknown. They didn't tell us what we were exposed to," Dr. Thelma Byrne said.
The Negev Nuclear Research Center is an Israeli nuclear installation located in the Negev desert. The purpose of the reactor is widely assumed to be the manufacturing of nuclear weapons and the majority of defense experts have concluded that it does in fact do so.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/215429.html