Veiled threats require calibration. Too explicit, and they risk spilling over into uncontrolled confrontation. Too elliptical, and their impact might be lost entirely.
When it comes to Israel’s regular hints that it could attack Iranian nuclear facilities to prevent them producing a bomb, there’s another liability: boredom and incredulity at all the repetition.
In what seems to have been an attempt to vary the message, outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert made two sets of public remarks this month which held seeds of self-contradiction.
Addressing a visiting French delegation ahead of Israel’s Feb. 10 election, he said no Israeli government would “tolerate” a nuclear-armed Iran. The implication was that, no matter what the political stripe of the next ruling coalition, it would be willing to undertake all action, including go-it-alone air strikes, against the Iranians.
While the no-tolerance theme reappeared in a speech Olmert gave a North American Jewish group on Sunday, this time he sounded far more solicitous of Western efforts to talk Iran — which denies seeking nuclear weapons — into curbing its uranium enrichment.
“I have no doubt that new American President Barack Obama will stick to the position, that had been confirmed to me many times by the (former U.S.) president and vice president, that America will not tolerate a nuclear Iran. I am sure America will do everything it can to prevent this, together with Israel,” Olmert said.
“Israel will not act alone as the leader in preventing Iran from becoming a nuclear power.”
The Obama administration favours a ”carrot and stick” strategy of diplomatic overtures toward Tehran combined with the threat of tougher trade sanctions, and Washington has also said the military option remains available. Israel is keen to appear in sync with its U.S. ally.
Expert opinion is divided on whether Israel, which bombed Iraq’s nuclear reactor in 1981 and mounted a similar sortie against Syria in 2007, could take on Iran, whose facilities are numerous, distant and fortified.
The inconsistency of the signals from Israeli officialdom has prompted some independent analysts to suggest that the idea of preemptive strikes is a chimera cultivated to pressure the war-wary West into tackling Iran more forcibly.
Olmert’s spokesman, Mark Regev, said the prime minister’s public comments were consistent with Israeli policies on Iran.
Israel is assumed to have Middle East’s only atomic arsenal.
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why is that izrael complains about the UN being worthless and ineffective when its the UN who gave izrael the green light to start its apartheid of palestine to begin with. its the UN that continously ignores the fact that izrael is a terrrorist state armed with WMDs and an extremist government equivalent of the taliban that openly talks about ethninc cleansing and is violating its own “peace agreements” by stealing land. izrael is the cause of all problems in the middle east and with the U.S breast feeding it, there needs to be a counter to get izrael back in line. a nuclear iran would help keep izrael in check and tighten up the leash on them, which need done very badly. for the sake of their own people.
- Posted by sidneyIsraeli people have every right to be worried Iran wants to remove the all with what ever means and if israel doesnt do something soon they may be in deep trouble . The world should be doing more than sanctions. Sanctions hasnt slowed them down at. Un is worthless with all the problems in the world they walk away or close their eyes at all problems that are very important.
- Posted by steve vennemnngreat, we have another expert in azad who now can give hin analysis on iran. its the fact that we have uneducated people making assumption about things by watching youtube videos and thinking they now know everything. when the biggest problem has been the illietrate people from places like pakistan and saudia arabia and egypt misinterpreting the holiest book and carrying out barbaric acts and proclaiming them as “jihad” your idea of being a martyr is strapping C4 to yourself and going into some market place in baghdad or kabul and killing a bunch of women and kids, that is your idea of bravery and “jihad”. the so called “sharia law” people like you cry and wine about is based off some 16th century nomadic barbaric backward ideas instead of actual islamic law. perhaps educating yourself on your own religion first might be a good idea before coming into these semi intellectual blogs and posting up nonsense.
- Posted by hassanA few years back I joined ISM; having seen the media coverage of the Palestinian plight back home in Sweden, I felt compelled to do something. Having previously volunteered with an NGO in Ethiopia, I believed my third world experience could be advantageous.
There are un-deniably many obstacles to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Israeli settlements, the check points etc… My encounter with the pleasent Palestinian population in the West Bank, taught me that it was more concerened with perpetuating its own suffering– than coming up with a hands on initiative for improving the Palestinian way of life.
What I am implying is that the whole Palestinian narrative has to be re-directed some where constructive, and not destructive. Otherwise the Palestinian state will be clueless once it gains its independence from Israel.
- Posted by FredrikYour comments are not only ridiculous and dumb but they represent the uneducated and illiterate Sunni version of Islam. The same sect that runs out claiming if u kill women and children in a market place in Baghdad or Kabul that you get to “go to heaven with 70 virgins” waiting for u. its disillusioned and irrational thinking based on misinterpretations of the Quran that has brought all these problems to the Muslim world. It’s why you see the cowardly Sunni countries like Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan is the real source of terrorism and extremism. The “chest beating” ayatollahs you refer to pushed back the Saudi and U.S backed sadam. Your lack of understanding of your own religion, misinterpretations of the Quran, and real world politics is exactly why Sunni fundamentalism is a joke and on the decline. You have reduced your beliefs to listening to any Arabic speaking monkey of the street, claiming him a sheikh and doing whatever he tells you to do. Whether that means dressing up as woman and walk into some restraints and blow your self up and calling it jihad or flying airplanes into building to kill innocent civilians and calling it the “ultimate jihad”. Iran /Hezbollah/ and shia fights are against Israeli and U.S military not journalists and humanitarian workers. Your kind is too coward to take part in an actual military battle. You hide out in caves and amongst women and children and families. Perhaps going back and understand your own religion first might be a good idea before you decide to post up idiotic statements.
- Posted by HNare dealing with a theocratic state; Iran killed its own in thousands in 80s revolution. Their war time president Khamenei (8 yr war with Iraq), who went on national TV thumping his chest with death to Amrica and death to saddam sloganeering every Friday (they were prayers!!) in their nationwide brainwash program, is the current AYATOLLA of Shias (the pope). Its constitutionally mandatory to follow his orders (in civil/ military/police matters not religious matters) questioning of which may result in death. They sent underage boys to walk and clear the minefields, called them shahids under orders of Khomini. Thailand, Philippines, India, and Chechenya are some other areas these militants are aiding.
The Europe will succumb soon, allowing muslim personal laws to them as India already did. Which means, constitutionally there are 2 different laws in one nation depending on religion. More importantly, the next step is going to be imposition of Sharia law as Pakistan agreed to this past week to Taliban on its own soil. If Israel is not the front line whipping boy, its going to be amrica in its place, just because rest of the world is disinclined to face Islamic fundamentalism.
- Posted by AzadDPdm,
- Posted by sidneyjust because the izraeli government uses a military force to kill civilians and hamas sends a teenage boy strapped with C4 to kill people, there is NO difference. to claim that izrael has made “grave mistakes” is repulsive. they don’t make “grave mistakes” they make grave yards. you think that izrael does not know what they are doing when they go into a large concentration camp that they created with a million people forced to live in it that they are purposelly not killing civilians?? when you drop bombs and shells on UN hospital when u know it is a UN hospital, u know exactly what you are doing. with all its “sophisticated” weaspons and training, the IDF sure makes alot mistakes. this has become their excuse. they don’t make mistakes, they are a mistake. and in your response to all the”thousands” on rockets fired onto israel, where is the damage, I’m sure these deadly rockets that hit israel by the thousands are likely to cause damage and causalties, where are they?? here’s a thought, maybe if israel didn’t force people to live in a concentration camp, cut of food and supplies to a million people,steal land and home, maybe, just maybe no one would fire any rockets at them.