Middle East Monitor / August 26, 2022
Chief of the Israeli Mossad, David Barnea, described the emerging Iranian nuclear deal signed between Iran and world powers as “a strategic disaster” for Israel, and that “Israel has already begun preparations for a military strike against Iran if such action is deemed necessary.”
Israel’s Times of Israel newspaper quoted Barnea saying that the deal is “very bad for Israel” and that the US “is rushing into an Accord that is ultimately based on lies,” in reference to “Iran’s ongoing claim that its nuclear activities are peaceful in nature.”
He added that the agreement seems inevitable, “in light of the needs of the US and Iran. Washington is seeking to prevent Tehran from acquiring the capability to build a nuclear bomb, while the Islamic Republic is seeking relief from crippling financial and economic sanctions.”
Barnea believes the agreement “gives Iran license to amass the required nuclear material for a bomb in a few years.” He also believes that it will provide Tehran billions of dollars of its currently frozen money, and this increases the danger that Iran poses across the region through its proxies.
He also stressed that the deal “will not obligate Israel” and that Israel will act in the manner it sees fit to neutralize the threat against it, noting that “Israel has already begun preparations for a military strike against Iran if such action is deemed necessary.”
Iran announced, on Wednesday, that it received the US’s response to its suggestion to return to what is known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which former US President Donald Trump abandoned in 2018. Meanwhile, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, said on Tuesday that an agreement could be reached with Iran this week.
White House National Security Council spokesman, John Kirby, noted that “we are closer now than we were even just a couple of weeks ago because Iran made a decision to make some concessions.”
Diplomats from Iran, the US, China, Russia, France, the UK and Germany have been negotiating a deal for months for Iran to re-commit to the restrictions on its nuclear deal in exchange for lifting economic sanctions imposed on it.
In May 2018, former US President, Donald Trump, imposed sanctions on Tehran after announcing his country’s withdrawal from the nuclear deal signed with Iran in 2015 during the term of his predecessor, Barack Obama.
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Former intelligence chiefs urge Israel to prepare for military action against Iran
Middle East Monitor / August 29, 2022
A number of former Israeli intelligence and army chiefs have urged Israel to prepare for possible military action against Iran as the country is close to a nuclear bomb, Israel Hayom reported on Sunday.
Former Head of the Israeli Defence Ministry’s Political-Military Affairs Bureau, Amos Gilad, and former National Security Adviser Major General Yaakov Amidror, said that Israel should prepare to protect itself as efforts to prevent the nuclear deal will yield for no results.
According to Israel Hayom, Gilad said: “The Iranian threat is a major strategic threat to the State of Israel. It should be understood that this is not just a vision, but that the Iranians are investing enormous efforts into developing threatening capabilities.”
Gilad stated: “In Lebanon, according to foreign publications, they have 150,000 rockets aimed at Israel, as well as long-range missiles, cyber and terror capabilities, and above all – the fact that they are on the verge of going nuclear.”
Meanwhile, Amidror said: “This is a bad deal and it is good that Israel has made it clear that it is not bound by it. The diplomatic options were exhausted after the Americans decided to pursue an agreement at almost any cost.”
He added: “I don’t see any way that does not involve force to convince the Iranians, because Iran does not stop under any diplomatic or economic pressure. This requires us to ensure that we are prepared for a military option.”
Similarly, Lieutenant Colonel Michael Segall, former head of the IDF Intelligence Directorate’s international and Iranian desks, said: “Within a short time, the nuclear deal will lead to a significant strengthening of Hezbollah” and other proxies in the region.
