Israel doesn’t rule out attacking Iran’s nuclear weapons facilities

October 2nd, 2009 WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama has assured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the four-decade-old secret Israel-American accord, allowing Israel to keep a nuclear arsenal without opening it to international inspections, would continue. According to the Washington Times, the US since 1969 has not pressured Israel to disclose its nuclear weapons or to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which could require Israel to give up its estimated several hundred nuclear bombs.

September 30th, 2009 Syria calls for Israel to join nuclear treatyUNITED NATIONS — Syria says Israel must comply with the demands of the International Atomic Energy Agency if the Mideast is to become a region free of weapons of mass destruction. Syria's Foreign Minister Walid Al-Moualem echoed on Monday calls by many Arab nations at the U.N.

September 29th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Iran's move to test-fire missiles over the weekend has met with international criticism, with the US saying they fit into Tehran's pattern of provocation. White House spokesperson Robert Gibbs said late Monday the tests were part of the "provocative nature with which Iran has acted on the world stage for a number of years".

September 28th, 2009 WASHINGTON - U S Defense Secretary Robert Gates has claimed that Iran has every intention of developing nuclear weapons. In an interview with ABC aired Sunday, Gates added that "the question of whether they have made a formal decision to move towards the development of nuclear weapons is in doubt." "This is part of a pattern of deception and lies on the part of the Iranians from the very beginning with respect to their nuclear program," he said.

September 27th, 2009 JERUSALEM - Israel thinks that the revelation of a clandestine uranium enrichment site in Iran will trigger the international community to act more forcefully to prevent the Islamic republic from developing nuclear weapons. "The free world has reached the last opportunity for engagement with Iran.

September 27th, 2009 LONDON - Premier British intelligence agency, MI6 chief, has been told that Saudi Arabia will permit Israel to fly over the kingdom to bomb Iran's nuclear sites. The MI6 chief discussed the issue in London with Mossad chief Meir Dagan and Saudi officials after British intelligence officers helped to uncover the plant, in the side of a mountain near the ancient city of Qom.

August 31st, 2009 LOS ANGELES - If Iran does not accept international proposals to roll back its nuclear programme by next month, it faces an imminent Israeli strike, a newspaper article said. In an opinion piece Sunday authored by Micah Zenko who is a political scientist with expertise in national security issues, the Los Angeles Times said Israel will act alone to stop the Islamic Republic from developing a nuclear weapon.

July 31st, 2009 JERUSALEM - Israel has sought help from the US to build a nuclear power plant in the country, a media report said Friday. Israel has already conveyed its request to the US, the Ynet news service reported.

June 22nd, 2009 BERLIN - Iran's nuclear weapons programme could destabilise the Middle East and is a threat not just to Israel but the entire world, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said. In an interview published Monday in German daily Bild, he said the main goal should be to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

June 12th, 2009 JERUSALEM - Israel has said that even if former Iran Prime Minister Mir Hossein Mousavi wins Friday's presidential elections, his country's quest for being nuclear-armed will not diminish. As more than 46.2 million eligible Iranian voters choose their president in elections on Friday, senior Israeli defense officials have stressed that the outcome is unlikely to have any impact on Teheran's continued race toward nuclear power.

June 7th, 2009 JERUSALEM - Israel Sunday urged the international community to take determined action to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. The Israeli foreign ministry also questioned the UN nuclear watchdog's ability to monitor Iran's nuclear programme.

May 29th, 2009 TEHRAN - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Friday reiterated that Tehran was ready to negotiate with the US but stressed that the talks should be held under "equal conditions". The Americans keep sending us messages for negotiation.

May 28th, 2009 JERUSALEM - An American Senator has said that Israel must be allowed to make its own decision on whether to bomb Iran's nuclear facilities, even if it is taken as a "last resort". Senator Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey, who has been a consistent backer of Israel and is a supporter of Obama - said, "Israel didn't ask us permission to drop bombs twice on Syrian nuclear facilities.

May 19th, 2009 LOS ANGELES - CIA Director Leon Panetta has said the United States does not know the location of all of Pakistan's nuclear weapons, but is confident the country has them secure. Panetta spoke days after the top US military officer told Congress that there is evidence of Pakistan adding to its nuclear weapons systems and warheads.

April 18th, 2009 JERUSALEM - The Israeli military is preparing to launch a massive aerial strike on Iran's nuclear facilities within days of being given the go-ahead by its new government. "Israel wants to know that if its forces were given the green light they could strike at Iran in a matter of days, even hours.