Olmert: Rule Out Nothing on IranBy Hana Levi Julian (INN)
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert says a military attack against Iran is still an option if the Islamic state does not end its quest to build a nuclear weapon. In a report set to appear in the Sunday edition of the German Der Spiegel, Olmert is quoted as saying that threats by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to wipe Israel off the map pose an existential threat to Israel.The Prime Minister said in the interview, published ahead of Olmert's meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, that he expected graver measures to be taken to block Iran's ability to carry out its threats against Israel. Russia and China have blocked what some call half-hearted attempts by Britain, France and Germany in the United Nations Security Council to impose sanctions on Iran.
Olmert urged the international community to impose the sanctions it promised months ago, when Iran ignored an August 31 deadline to end its uranium enrichment program. Nothing has happened, however. When asked if he would rule out a military strike against Iran, the Prime Minister said flatly, I rule nothing out. Here is a leader who says openly that it is his aim to wipe Israel off the map. Israel is a member of the United Nations, he reminded. That someone says such a thing these days is absolutely criminal.The Iranian president flaunted the progress of his country’s nuclear program, meanwhile, describing the expansion of its uranium enrichment activities. He was quoted on Saturday by the Fars news agency as saying, We have started installing 3,000 centrifuges, and promised that the Islamic Republic will be able to produce our nuclear fuel once we install 60,000 centrifuges.
Even as the Islamic Republic moves towards developing a nuclear weapon capable of destroying Israel, and as the president of the country threatens to do so, a conference organized by Ahmadinejad is set for Sunday and Monday to question whether the Nazis really murdered six million Jews in the Holocaust.The Iranian President has called the Holocaust a myth and said reports of the genocide were exaggerated. Germany summoned a top Iranian official to its Foreign Ministry on Friday, and warned that any attempt to question the Holocaust was shocking and unacceptable.Ahmadinejad has also kept the fires burning closer to Israel’s
borders, providing strong financial backing to the Hamas terrorist organization leading the Palestinian Authority.The Iranian President praised Hamas Chairman and PA Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh after their meeting last week for not caving in to international pressure to recognize the Jewish State, renounce violence and uphold peace agreements with Israel signed by the previous PA government. Funding from most Western nations was cut off until Hamas agreed to meet the demands.
The terrorist faction, egged on by its Damascus-based politburo chief, Khaled Meshaal, has vowed to continue its refusal to recognize Israel, together with the Islamic Republic.The Iranian nation will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Palestinian people until Jerusalem is liberated, said Ahmadinejad, and vowed to continue its financial support of the terrorist entity. Iran has sent $120 million to the PA so far this year. Despite the boost, however, thousands of civil service workers, including hundreds of police officers in Gaza rioted in the streets on Saturday, having not received their salaries for months.
