 The world's "moment of truth" regarding Iran has arrived, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni told the United Nations General Assembly Wednesday night, adding that the international community knows well the "lessons of the past" and the "consequences of appeasement and indifference." | “What more needs to happen for the world to take this threat seriously? What more needs to happen to end the hesitation and the excuses? The international community is faced with no greater responsibility than to stand against this dark and growing danger...” |
Iran doesn't deserve a seat in the United Nations or among the family of nations, she said, telling the world leaders gathered in New York that there was "no greater challenge" today to the values of the democratic world "than that posed by the leaders of Iran."
"They deny and mock the Holocaust," she said. "They speak proudly and openly of their desire to wipe Israel off the map." Chiding the UN, which has been dragging its feet for months on whether to clamp sanctions on Teheran for not stopping its uranium enrichment, Livni asked, "What more needs to happen for the world to take this threat seriously? What more needs to happen to end the hesitation and the excuses? The international community is faced with no greater responsibility than to stand against this dark and growing danger - not for Israel's sake, but for its own; for the sake of the values it claims to embrace; for the sake of the world we all wish our children to inherit."
| “Livni's blunt, harsh words against Iran were not universally applauded in Jerusalem...” |
Livni's blunt, harsh words against Iran were not universally applauded in Jerusalem, with one diplomatic official saying that Israel was making a mistake in becoming the spokesman for the anti-Iranian coalition. "The Saudis are as afraid of Iranian getting the bomb as we are," the Israeli official said. "But when we stand there and shout from the rooftops, they don't have to - we are essentially doing their dirty work." The official said Israel should discreetly provide the international community with the relevant intelligence information regarding Iran, but should not take the lead in attacking Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his regime. |