Tag Archives: Benjamin Netanyahu

Netanyahu Tells U.S. Senator ISIS Should Be Fought; Iran Stopped

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy and said that while ISIS needs to be fought, Iran needs to be stopped in their nuclear program.

“We shouldn’t give Iran a path to nuclear weapons and billions of dollars to pursue aggression because of ISIS. ISIS should be fought; Iran should be stopped,” Netanyahu said.

“As horrific as ISIS is, once Iran acquires nuclear weapons, it will be a hundred times more dangerous and more destructive than ISIS,” Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu spoke to the Senator about the nuclear negotiations that have resumed with Iran.

“I see no reason to rush to a deal, and certainly not a bad deal that paves Iran’s path to the bomb, but also fills Iran’s coffers with tens of billions of dollars to pursue its aggression throughout the Middle East and around Israel’s borders,” Netanyahu said.

Cassidy, who defeated incumbent Mary Landrieu in a runoff election last year, has been a staunch supporter of Israel during his time in the U.S. House of Representatives.

New Israel Government’s Top Priority: Iran

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu presented his new cabinet in Jerusalem on Tuesday and vowed to fight Islamic extremists that he says are backed by the Iranian government.

“This government has been established at a time of great challenges and opportunities,” Netanyahu said. “Our first challenge is to ensure the security of Israel in the face of accumulating threats around us. Radical Islam is lapping at all our borders, nearly all in the form of factions and forces led by Iran and other radical elements.”

Netanyahu made a surprise allusion to Sunni-led Arab nations in the region in saying that Israel would seek partnerships against Iran in that country’s quest for nuclear weapons.

“Many states in the area have joint interests with us and see eye to with us on the dangers. We will make every effort to translate that partnership into peace,” Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu also said that he would seek “a responsible political settlement with the Palestinians.”

Netanyahu also said Jerusalem would not return to a “divided and wounded” city.  The meeting of the new cabinet was held at the Israel Museum to celebrate Jerusalem Day and the 50th anniversary of the Museum.

Benjamin Netanyahu Finalizes Coalition Government

Israel’s Prime Minister has finalized his new coalition government.

The agreement comes seven weeks after Likud scored a victory in the election by a surprisingly large margin.  The PM obtained the support of the Bayit Yehudi party to give him the 61 seats necessary for control of the Knesset.

“I’m sure that no-one is surprised that these negotiations were lengthy,” Mr Netanyahu told a news conference.

“Time is of the essence, not only because I’m leaving now to call the president and the chairman of the Knesset (parliament) to tell them that I’ve managed to form a government, but also because we’ll need to form it by next week in order to give a strong and stable government.”

The leader of Bayit Yehudi demanded the justice ministry in return for support by the 8 MPs in their party.  Naftali Bennett is an opponent of the Palestinian state and also believes that settler communities in the West Bank should be expanded.

Netanyahu says that while he now has a majority, he will continue to expand the coalition if possible.

Netanyahu Says World Hasn’t Learned Lesson

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told those attending the Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony that the world has not learned the lessons of the Holocaust.

Netanyahu used the current situation with Iran and nuclear negotiations as an example  of the world not learning lessons regarding appeasement of tyrannical regimes.

“Appeasing tyrannical regimes will only increase their aggression and is an approach that is liable to drag the world into larger wars,” he said.  “The bad deal with Iran signals that the lessons of the Holocaust have not been learned.”

The prime minister continued to say that even if the rest of the world bows down before Iran, Israel will stand alone.

“Even if we are forced to stand alone against Iran we will not fear. In every circumstance we will preserve our right and our ability to defend ourselves,” he added.

Netanyahu said that the world needs to protect the values of freedom and tolerance to ensure that humanity can be free.

French Fact Sheet On Iranian Deal Shows Iran Could Get Bomb

A French government fact sheet on the Iranian nuclear deal, not meant for public view but leaked to the Times of Israel, shows that Iran could be able to quickly generate material needed for a nuclear bomb.

The deal allows Iran use of the IR-2 and IR-4 centrifuges, which can rapidly create highly enriched uranium that is needed for nuclear weapons.

In addition, the deal allows Iran to continue their research and development on the IR-4, IR-5, IR-6 and IR-8 centrifuges.  The IR-8 centrifuge could enrich uranium at 20 times the speed of the current IR-1 centrifuges.  The document released by American officials did not specify this fact.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been assailed by American officials after he said the deal was “very bad” for Israel and paves the way for Iran to create a nuclear bomb.  The French document appears to back up the claims of Netanyahu that were criticized by American officials.

This is the second time documents have conflicted with the American “fact sheets” on the Iranian deal.

Israeli analysts noticed differences between the American and Iranian fact sheets just days after the announced deal.  Ehud Ya’ari of Israel’s Channel 2 News noticed that while the U.S. says restrictions on enrichment last 15 years, Iranians say it’s only 10.  The Iranians also said that they can continue R&D on centrifuges, which the French document confirms, and the American documents say is not permitted.

Israeli Officials Downplay Obama Statements Of Support

Israeli officials responded to an interview by President Obama claiming he supports Israel by saying his platitudes are irrelevant if Iran gets a nuclear weapon.

Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz told Israel’s Channel 2 that while President Obama’s claim it would be a “fundamental failure” of his presidency if Israel is weakened is “pleasant-sounding”, “no assistance and no backing will help if Iran acquires nuclear weapons.”

Steinitz, a colleague of Netanyahu, released a government fact sheet outlining 10 differences in the deal between Israel and American views.  Among the questions were what would happen to Iran’s stockpiled enriched uranium and why the lifting of sanctions was not connected to changes in Iranian behavior.

The document concludes “the alternative to this framework is a better deal, one that will significantly dismantle Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, bring about a cessation of its aggression in the region and terrorist activities around the world, as well as end its efforts to destroy Israel. The framework deal does not block Iran’s path to the bomb. By removing the sanctions and lifting the main restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program in about a decade, this framework paves Iran’s path to a bomb. The result will be a dramatic increase in the risks of nuclear proliferation and an increase in the chances of a terrible war.”

U.S. officials dismissed the Israeli fact sheet and statements regarding the deal.  Obama advisor Ben Rhodes said the deal “is the best deal that can emerge from these negotiations” and refused to even consider adding the clause the Iran affirms Israel’s right to exist.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu told CNN that while he respects the president, the deal is a threat to the Israeli people.

“I trust the president is doing what he thinks is good for the United States. But I think we can have a legitimate difference of opinion on this,” Netanyahu said.

President Obama admitted Tuesday to NPR, without acknowledging Israeli’s claims from the beginning about this fact, that at the end of the deal Iran would have an “almost zero” breakout time to a nuclear bomb.

U.S. Government Reveals Israel’s Top Secret Nuclear Program

The Pentagon has declassified a Defense Department document that reveals the extend of the Israeli nuclear program.

The release breaches an agreement between the two nations to not reveal Israel’s nuclear ability.

The move is seen as retribution by the administration toward Israel for Prime Minister Netanyahu’s address to Congress.  The document revealed Israel’s capabilities while blocking out the sections on the document related to France, Italy, West Germany and NATO nations.

The report states that Israel is “developing the kind of codes which will enable them to make hydrogen bombs. That is, codes which detail fission and fusion processes on a microscopic and macroscopic level.”

The document says that Israel’s ability is “an almost exact parallel of the capability currently existing at our [American] National Laboratories.”

The release is the first time the United States has confirmed that Israel is a nuclear power.

Netanyahu Scores Big Election Victory

Many news outlets proclaimed that it was a race that was too close to call.  The evening was filled with commentators speculating that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be struggling to put together a coalition government.

Weeks of uncertainty.  A possible path for Netanyahu’s main rival Isaac Herzog to become PM.

In the end, it wasn’t even that close.

israelelection1With 99 percent of the vote counted, Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud party scored a decisive victory over his leftist counterpart’s party giving Netanyahu his fourth term as PM.  Likud is in line for 29 or 30 seats in the Knesset with Herzog’s ZIonist Union at 24 seats.  This means that Netanyahu will be able to quickly put together a ruling coalition and get a new government in place.

The result was stunning for many observers who had been showing polls of Netanyahu behind by as many as 4 to 5 seats at the lowest point.  Pundits said that even if Netanyahu somehow pulled out a victory he would be weakened politically both internationally and within Israel.

No one saw this strong a win coming for Likud.  By comparison, the last election had Likud teaming up with another party to gain 36 seats.  Likud gets 30 alone in this election.

“I am proud of the Israeli people that, in the moment of truth, knew how to separate between what’s important or what’s not and to stand up for what’s important,” Netanyahu told enthusiastic supporters at Likud’s election party at the Tel Aviv Fairgrounds. “For the most important thing for all of us, which is real security, social economy and strong leadership.”

netanyahu2Likud minister Silvan Shalom said that it would be likely a coalition of “63 to 64 seats” would be formed in the coming days behind Prime Minister Netanyahu.

“Israel said today a very clear ‘yes’ to Prime Minister Netanyahu and to the Likud to continue leading the State of Israel,” Shalom told reporters. “We’ll do it with our allies. We’ll have a strong coalition that is able to deal with all the important issues.”

Analysts say that Netanyahu’s push to the right in the last days of the campaign, including his change in position refusing to back a two-state solution, helped fuel the unexpected victory as it drew voters from other conservative parties.

 

Israelis Go To The Polls

Israelis will go the polls today to choose a new government.

Polls show that current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trailing in the polls to a group that has stated their intent to work with the Palestinian Authority and other Arab groups throughout the region to create Palestine and give up land.

However, the last polls which were released Friday had enough undecided voters to swing the election in either direction.

As much as 70% of Israel’s eligible voters will go to the polls.

The election is expected to be decided by the 20 percent of the population made up of Arabs.  The Arab community has long complained of discrimination by Israeli authorities and expressed their desires to join with groups like Hamas and Hexbollah.

One voter told the Associated Press he was backing Netanyahu because he saw it as a way to defend the nation.

“He is not great, but he is better than anything else out there,” she said. “I can’t vote for the left … It’s a Jewish country, not a Palestinian one,” Meshy Alon said.

In Israel, voters vote for party, not individual candidates.  No party has ever won a clear majority in the 120 member parliament, meaning it can take weeks to form a coalition government.

Netanyahu Warns Iran Deal Could Threaten Israel’s Existence

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a very hard warning Monday to the members of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.  

The nuclear deal the United States is planning with Iran could threaten the very existence of the nation of Israel.

“As prime minister of Israel, I have a moral obligation to speak up in the face of these dangers while there’s still time to avert them,” Netanyahu told a cheering audience.

Netanyahu downplayed conflicts between the White House and Israel.  

“My speech (to Congress) is not intended to show disrespect for President Obama and the office that he holds,” Netanyahu said. “I deeply appreciate all that President Obama has done for Israel.”

The White House tried to sound a conciliatory tone after Netanyahu’s speech, saying the U.S. and Israel are united in the goal of a non-nuclear Iran.