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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| We can deal with Iran, boasts Israeli minister |
| 2007-03-02 |
| ISRAEL can deal with the Iranian threat on its own if the international community fails to do so, tough-talking Minister for Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman claimed yesterday. Mr Lieberman warned that if Iran were permitted to acquire non-conventional weapons, "the entire Middle East will enter into a mad race to achieve similar capabilities". Appearing before the Knesset foreign affairs and defence committee, Mr Lieberman said: "Israel has the capability to deal with the Iranian threat even in the worst-case scenario in which our friends throughout the world stop dealing with the threat and we are left on our own." It was his first appearance before the committee since taking the right-wing Yisrael Beytenu party into the governing coalition in November. Mr Lieberman said Iran was more vulnerable than the image it attempted to project. "Sixty per cent of the population lives in shocking poverty, there are a million and a half students with no prospect of jobs, 900,000 women working in prostitution and three million drug addicts," he said. It would be easier for the international community to pressure Iran on the nuclear question, he said, than it was with North Korea since Tehran's economy was in the hands of a small number of businessmen - "50 to 60 families" - who were vulnerable to travel restrictions and limitations on bank transactions. "Sanctions should be directed mainly against them," he said. The 49-year-old minister, who has just returned from an official visit to his native Russia, said Moscow's attitude towards Iran was changing. "Russia and Israel are on the same side of the barricades," he said. He noted that Moscow recently held up shipments of nuclear fuel to the nuclear power plant it was building at Bushehr in Iran. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #21 Man the quality of trolls around here as really gone downhill. They don't even know geography, damn. |
| Posted by: djohn66 2007-03-02 23:26 |
| #20 How they're Arabs......Thats a real educated statement. Last time i checked you moron they're Persian. Lebanon might be on its way to an Iranian client state, but last I checked, Jordan, Syria, and Egypt were Arab. Must suck to have failed geography. Or were you taking Peace Studies instead? |
| Posted by: Pappy 2007-03-02 20:56 |
| #19 see? Even Cindy Sheehan disagrees with you.... mumble mumble |
| Posted by: Frank G 2007-03-02 20:47 |
| #18 Israel's neighbors are Persians? Nice geopolitical knowledge dickhead. BZZZZT weong! Unless you count the rent-a-puppet Hezbollah, you're completely WRONG! The Prophet's asswipe more likely |
| Posted by: Cindy Sheehan 2007-03-02 20:46 |
| #17 Mr. Profit, can you give me any insight on the over/under on Syrian (arab) thermal plant production in 2008? My broker sees a steep decline in output, but he's a Joooooooooooo, so I'd like your opinion. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2007-03-02 20:39 |
| #16 Hey, it's like Tuco said: "When it's time to shoot, SHOOT. Don't talk!" Psst-hey, Israel? Are you listening? It's time to shoot! |
| Posted by: mac 2007-03-02 18:53 |
| #15 You know memri.org is a great place to get an actual transcript of what was said. |
| Posted by: Valentine 2007-03-02 16:36 |
| #14 Sorry Prophet, but you are spinning. That was the latest statement regarding the Soviet Union. There have been others prior that were clear and not taken out of context. Try some of the previous ones … or perhaps even the banner hung across the Shahab which read ‘wipe Israel off the map’ Further, you brought up living with Neighbors peacefully - which would include all neighbors, not just the Persian variety, correct? The rest are Arabs, so again you are spinning. Or you are ignoring history and falling into the Great Catastrophe meme. As it is clearly the region which needs to live in peace with all Neighbors - far more deaths have been cause by Shia vs. Sunni conflict since 632 than conflict with Israel can come close to. You may wish to chase down that front rather than Israel if you are really interested with Neighbors in the region living in peace. Can't say it is Israel's fault either, unless you ignore the history, as the Shia vs. Sunni rift has been raging far longer than anything to do with modern Israel. If you won’t chase down that front, then you have no credibility saying Israel needs to live in peace … shouldn’t all parties there strive for peace? |
| Posted by: bombay 2007-03-02 16:29 |
| #13 The reason the Jooos keep saying that President Ahmadenijad says he's going to wipe Israel off the map is because, my dear Mr. Prophet, he has said so in almost every major speech he's made, domestically -- in Persian -- and abroad. The Joos have learnt to believe those who say such things, because historically it has been demonstrated that those who so speak generally act upon such words -- just as last year Iran sponsored the Lebanese Hizb'allah (that means Party of God in Arabic, in case your Arabic doesn't go that far) attack on Israel, for which Israel retaliated. Oh, and President Ahmadenijad has also repeatedly said (in those same speeches) that it won't matter if Israel tries to retaliate, because Allah won't let Israel's bombs explode. So mutally assured destruction seems rather a moot point. By the way, you do know that taking that nym is blasphemy, right? After all, the Koran says that Mohammed was the last prophet ever. Not that I care whether you end up in Hell for it, but as someone so concerned about the subject, you ought to be more respectful. More careful, too -- death fatwas have been issued for far less blasphemous things. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-03-02 16:18 |
| #12 Iran would not be crazy enough to use the bomb on Israel for the same reasons the cold war remained a cold war and that was mutually assured destruction. I don't recall the Soviets overrunning our embassy and holding our diplomats hostage for 400 days. The Mullahs have convinced me their leadership is crazy and that only a fool would expect them to act rationally. MAD is not an alternative with these loons, only nuclear extermination for one side or the other. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2007-03-02 15:43 |
| #11 How they're Arabs......Thats a real educated statement. Last time i checked you moron they're Persian. Thats a different thing in case you didn't know. When i said to live in peace with its neighbors you have to forget the past. Imagine that America still harbored bad feelings from their civil war. I agree that Israel needs to defend it self but the last war it fought in Lebanon was no different than a wrestler beating up a midget. Also, when Ahmadinajad was giving his speech in which you say he called upon the annihalation of Israel that was taken out of context. He said that, "as the Soviet Union ceased to exist so would Zionism". Russia wasn't destroyed the last time I checked and seems to be makeing a come come back on the world stage. The reason the media keeps on bringing this up in the main stream media is because the Jews have alot of influence there. They keep on saying that he said he wants to,"wipe Israel off the map", so they can have a reason to launch a pre-emptive strike on the country so Israel can maintain its never publicly declared nuclear deterrance. Iran would not be crazy enough to use the bomb on Israel for the same reasons the cold war remained a cold war and that was mutually assured destruction. |
| Posted by: the Prophet 2007-03-02 15:37 |
| #10 allow the people living around it and in it to live in dignity and prosperity how? They're Arabs |
| Posted by: Frank G 2007-03-02 10:20 |
| #9 Pesach almost upon us Shipman. I'm thinking genegenered Locusts. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2007-03-02 09:00 |
| #8 Are you thinking Turnip Termite grom? |
| Posted by: Shipman 2007-03-02 08:46 |
| #7 Israel tried integrating with Paleostan and got suicide bombers. Hell of a deal. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2007-03-02 05:03 |
| #6 Nothing is wrong with Iran that a failure of their staple food crop can't fix --- nukes are for pussies. |
| Posted by: gromgoru 2007-03-02 04:45 |
| #5 It neeeds to change its ways by not just livin' in peace with its neighbors, but also to sincerly respect and allow the people living around it and in it to live in dignity and prosperity Attacked three times in the last century - I think Israel has a fairly good idea of how to treat its neighbours. |
| Posted by: Howard UK 2007-03-02 04:29 |
| #4 How the hell can it live in peace with its neighbours , when they call for its total annihilation week in week out , you clueless retard . Go hug a tree you plonker. |
| Posted by: MacNails 2007-03-02 03:49 |
| #3 Israel will only continue planting the seeds of its destruction if it continues down this path of aparthied and oppression. It neeeds to change its ways by not just livin' in peace with its neighbors, but also to sincerly respect and allow the people living around it and in it to live in dignity and prosperity. If this does not happen soon one day, terrible things are going to happen to both sides. |
| Posted by: theProphet 2007-03-02 03:30 |
| #2 Israel cannot afford to wait, nor can it succumb to the temptation of relying on others to guarantee its existence.. allies yes, sovereign guarantors no. Vis-Ã -vis Iran: Intel and preparedness, the right plan joined to the right overkill/robust attack. |
| Posted by: RD 2007-03-02 01:39 |
| #1 I wonder how much it cost Israel to get that shipment cancelled. |
| Posted by: Mike N. 2007-03-02 00:49 |