Netanyahu: World must stop Iran from conducting second holocaust

[Jefferson23]

Opposition leader Tzipi Livni says Israel does not justify its existence on the Holocaust but on the Jewish people's historic ties to the country.

By Jonathan Lis

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the international community Tuesday to take steps against Iran's nuclear program and "not sit idly by" during any attempt to carry out another Holocaust.

"This is a day when the world needs to commit not to allow another genocide and to act so that weapons of mass destruction don't reach the hands of Iran's ayatollahs. Only a combination of crippling sanctions and putting all the options on the table can make Iran stop," Netanyahu told the Knesset, which was marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

"We can't stick our heads in the sand. The Iranian regime's emissaries, Hamas and Hezbollah, have already fired thousands of missiles at us, but when there are those who try to belittle or deny those who are warning of the danger, they apparently haven't learned their lesson. The lesson is that the countries of the world must be roused to act against the threat while there is still time."

Netanyahu raised the question of whether the world had learned the lessons of the Holocaust. He noted the uniqueness of the genocide committed against the Jews during World War II, but asked whether the establishment of the United Nations had prevented subsequent genocides.

in full: http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/netanyahu-world-must-stop-iran-from-conducting-second-holocaust-1.409063

[bemildred]

1. Stirring logic:

"We can't stick our heads in the sand. The Iranian regime's emissaries, Hamas and Hezbollah, have already fired thousands of missiles at us, but when there are those who try to belittle or deny those who are warning of the danger, they apparently haven't learned their lesson. The lesson is that the countries of the world must be roused to act against the threat while there is still time."

Interesting contrast of Bibi with Ms Livni:

She added that Israel was not in danger of destruction. "Our role is to tell parents that the country is a secure place for their children," she said. "With such security, we should demand that the world do what is necessary to prevent those who don't accept the international community's values from obtaining [nuclear] weapons."

She makes a good point, exaggerating the fear factor probably won't help your immigration stats.

[Crunchy Frog]

2. Auto-Godwin?

[bemildred]

12. I've been thinking about that for a day or so.

And I can't think of anything that works better. There is definitely something recursive about it, but "meta-Godwin" doesn't work and nothing else strikes my fancy.

[bemildred]

3. Obama: US determined to prevent nuclear-armed Iran

Compare and contrast ...

The United States is determined to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon and will take no options off the table to achieve that goal, President Barack Obama said in his State of the Union address on Tuesday.

Obama said a peaceful resolution of the Iran nuclear dispute is still possible if Iran changes course and meets international obligations.

In a speech largely devoted to the US economy, the US President voiced his commitment to Israel's security during the address.

"Our ironclad commitment to Israel's security has meant the closest cooperation between our countries in history," Obama stated.

http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=255052

[bemildred]

4. Obama: No options off table on Iran nuclear program

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama warned Iran on Tuesday the United States would keep up pressure on its disputed nuclear program with "no options off the table" but said the door remained open to talks for a peaceful resolution.

In his State of the Union address, Obama said Tehran was isolated and facing "crippling" sanctions that he said would continue so long as the Islamic Republic keeps its back turned to the international community.

"America is determined to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, and I will take no options off the table to achieve that goal. But a peaceful resolution of this issue is still possible, and far better, and if Iran changes course and meets its obligations, it can rejoin the community of nations," he said.

Upon taking office in 2009, Obama broke with his Republican predecessor George W. Bush and offered an olive branch to Iran, saying he wanted a new beginning with the country that Bush had labelled part of the "axis of evil."

http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/01/25/usa-obama-speech-iran-idINDEE80O04C20120125

[VKaz]

5. What, exactly does Obama mean by this

President Barack Obama warned Iran on Tuesday the United States would keep up pressure on its disputed nuclear program with "no options off the table

War? A nuclear strike?

Our own intelligence agency issued a report saying that there is no evidence that Iran has a nuclear weapons program, as has the IAEA. Israel is the nation that has violated dozens of UN sanctions. Israel is the nation that won’t allow weapons inspections. Israel is the nation that won’t sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and that has a vast horde of chemical, biological, conventional and nuclear weapons.

It is only Israel who feels the need to go to war. If they feel threatened then they should do their own dirty work instead of taking America down with them.

[bemildred]

13. It's a cant phrase, it means nothing.

Back in the day it meant something like: "We might nuke your ass." But nobody believes it now, so it's sort of jargon phrase intended to indicate toughness.

[azurnoir]

6. First Netanyahu with the the 'existential threat' another Holocaust ...... then Obama with

No option off the table......... is it deja vu? seems I've been hearing this stuff for years

but then again seeing as how the EU has agreed to embargo Iranian oil he does need to ratchet up fear before the effects of that begin to show

and Obama can hardly say "we will not go to war with Iran" that's just not the way to play diplomatic poker

[Donald Ian Rankin]

7. If only all his demands were so easy to satisfy.

I wish he'd spend more time demanding that we prevent things that aren't going to happen anyhow, and less time demanding that we let him continue the occupation.

[bemildred]

8. Robert Fisk: We've been here before – and it suits Israel that we never forget 'Nuclear Iran'

Turning round a story is one of the most difficult tasks in journalism – and rarely more so than in the case of Iran. Iran, the dark revolutionary Islamist menace. Shia Iran, protector and manipulator of World Terror, of Syria and Lebanon and Hamas and Hezbollah. Ahmadinejad, the Mad Caliph. And, of course, Nuclear Iran, preparing to destroy Israel in a mushroom cloud of anti-Semitic hatred, ready to close the Strait of Hormuz – the moment the West's (or Israel's) forces attack.

Given the nature of the theocratic regime, the repulsive suppression of its post-election opponents in 2009, not to mention its massive pools of oil, every attempt to inject common sense into the story also has to carry a medical health warning: no, of course Iran is not a nice place. But ...

Let's take the Israeli version which, despite constant proof that Israel's intelligence services are about as efficient as Syria's, goes on being trumpeted by its friends in the West, none more subservient than Western journalists. The Israeli President warns us now that Iran is on the cusp of producing a nuclear weapon. Heaven preserve us. Yet we reporters do not mention that Shimon Peres, as Israeli Prime Minister, said exactly the same thing in 1996. That was 16 years ago. And we do not recall that the current Israeli PM, Benjamin Netanyahu, said in 1992 that Iran would have a nuclear bomb by 1999. That would be 13 years ago. Same old story.

In fact, we don't know that Iran really is building a nuclear weapon. And after Iraq, it's amazing that the old weapons of mass destruction details are popping with the same frequency as all the poppycock about Saddam's titanic arsenal. Not to mention the date problem. When did all this start? The Shah. The old boy wanted nuclear power. He even said he wanted a bomb because "the US and the Soviet Union had nuclear bombs" and no one objected. Europeans rushed to supply the dictator's wish. Siemens – not Russia – built the Bushehr nuclear facility.

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-weve-been-here-before--and-it-suits-israel-that-we-never-forget-nuclear-iran-6294111.html

[Purveyor]

9. +1 Thanks for posting. eom

[bemildred]

10. My pleasure. nt

[Jefferson23]

11. Netanyahu: Iran sanctions won't necessarily halt Iran's nuclear program

PM urges international community to continue imposing sanctions on Tehran, but says he is unsure whether the move will foil Iran's attempts to develop its nuclear program.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that Israel is working to increase international pressure on Iran, but said that thus far, sanctions were unsuccessful in halting Tehran's nuclear program.

"We are working to increase the international pressure on Iran," Netanyahu said while speaking before the Knesset. "Even though Iran has not halted its nuclear program, and we do not know whether the sanctions will be effective, this is definitely the right step."

Netanyahu said that he has spoken to French President Nicolas Sarkozy after the European Union decided to impose a wide-reaching oil embargo on Iran, and praised him for his leadership on the difficult decision. He said he also spoke to British Prime Minister David Cameron and thanked him for his part as well.

"I thank them for undertaking this international effort," he said.

"I praised China for decreasing its oil imports from Iran," he said. "I also spoke to the Indian Foreign Minister on the same issue. I hope other countries such as South Korea and Japan will follow this lead."
Netanyahu said that he has spoken to French President Nicolas Sarkozy after the European Union decided to impose a wide-reaching oil embargo on Iran, and praised him for his leadership on the difficult decision. He said he also spoke to British Prime Minister David Cameron and thanked him for his part as well.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/netanyahu-iran-sanctions-won-t-necessarily-halt-iran-s-nuclear-program-1.409209

[Jefferson23]

14. ISIS report: Iran won't pursue a nuclear weapon program in 2012

Report by Institute for Science and International Security says 'Iran is unlikely to decide to dash toward making nuclear weapons as long as its uranium enrichment capability remains as limited as it is today.'

By Reuters

Iran is unlikely to move toward building a nuclear weapon this year because it does not yet have the capability to produce enough weapon-grade uranium, a draft report by the Institute for Science and International Security said on Wednesday.

The report by the institute founded by nuclear expert David Albright offered a more temperate view of Iran's nuclear program than some of the heated rhetoric that has surfaced since the United States and its allies stepped up sanctions on Tehran.

"Iran is unlikely to decide to dash toward making nuclear weapons as long as its uranium enrichment capability remains as limited as it is today," the report said.

The United States and Iran are engaged in a war of words over sanctions, with Iran threatening to retaliate by blocking oil shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. The United States said it would not allow that to happen.

in full: http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/isis-report-iran-won-t-pursue-a-nuclear-weapon-program-in-2012-1.409264