Arabs want action on Israel nukes
Pastor Dale Morgan
Arabs want action on Israel nukes*
From correspondents in Cairo
December 14, 2006 04:27am
Article from: Agence France-Presse
IRAN and Arab states today seized on Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's
statement implying that Israel has nuclear weapons, calling it proof of
a regional threat and demanding UN action.
Yesterday Mr Olmert appeared to admit - in breach of the Jewish state's
decades-long policy of ambiguity - that Israel possessed such weapons.
Iran called his comments a confession and demanded action from the
United Nations.
"This confession shows the real threat to security and stability in the
Middle East, and it shows this regime's evil plans to carry out threats,
a terror strategy and continued occupation," foreign ministry spokesman
Mohammed Ali Hosseini said.
"It is extremely necessary to adopt fast and efficient solutions on the
UN Security Council and the Organisation of the Islamic Conference and
other regional organisations to combat these clear threats," he said.
Israel, which Iran does not recognise, is Tehran's arch-foe. It has
repeatedly called for UN action over Iran's nuclear program and
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's anti-Israel comments.
The Arab League urged the international community and the Security
Council to exert pressure on Israel "to open its nuclear facilities in a
transparent manner".
"It is essential that Israel comply with international resolutions,"
Mohammed Sobeih, the assistant secretary general in charge of
Palestinian affairs, told reporters in Cairo.
The 22-member body called on "all states which offered assistance to
Israel, particularly on the issues of uranium and heavy water, to speak
out without delay", he said.
"Everyone knows that Israel possesses weapons of mass destruction which
could reach as far as 2000km, and all Arab capitals are within this
range," Mr Sobeih said.
Today the Gulf Cooperation Council - grouping Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates - demanded that
sanctions be imposed on Israel.
GCC Secretary General Abderrahman al-Attiya called on the United States
not to apply a policy of "double standards" and to "work for the
application (against Israel) of the resolutions of international
legitimacy and of Chapter VII".
Chapter VII of the UN charter deals with action the Security Council
might take regarding threats to the peace, breaches of the peace and
acts of aggression.
As a first step, it says the council may call for member states to
impose sanctions, including complete or partial interruption of economic
relations and the severance of diplomatic relations.
If such measures fail, military action can be called for.
In an interview yesterday with German television, Mr Olmert listed
Israel as a country with nuclear weapons.
"We never threatened any nation with annihilation," he said.
"Iran openly, explicitly and publicly threatens to wipe Israel off the
map. Can you say that this is the same level, when they are aspiring to
have nuclear weapons, as France, America, Russia and Israel?" he asked.
Mr Olmert's spokeswoman Miri Eisin was quick to deny that the prime
minister admitted Israel had nuclear weapons, saying "Israel will not be
the first country to introduce nuclear weapons to the region".