Prime Minister Netanyahu
Photo: EPA
Netanyahu: Iran is the one behind Mt. Dov attack
'Iran is the one arming, organizing, funding and launching its messengers of terror on our borders in the north and the south,' prime minister says.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday accused Iran of being behind Hezbollah's anti-missile attack in Mt. Dov the previous day, which claimed the lives of two soldiers and left 7 others wounded.
"Today, Iran is the one arming, organizing, funding and launching its messengers of terror on our borders in the north and the south," Netanyahu said.
"This is the same Iran that is now trying to get an agreement with world powers that would leave it with the capability to develop a nuclear weapon and we strongly oppose this agreement," the prime minister added.
Prime Minister Netanyahu (Photo: Reuters)
He vowed Israel would continue defending itself from every threat, "both near and far."
The prime minister was speaking a day after former Mossad head Meir Dagan criticized Netanyahu's visit to Congress, saying it won't serve to change Obama's mind on Iran, and compared Netanyahu and the late prime minister Ariel Sharon, saying Sharon preferred to keep his disagreements with the US discreet as opposed to Netanyahu.
While Dagan pointed to the differences between the two leaders of Likud, Netanyahu preferred to emphasize their similarities.
"Arik (Sharon) always understood the regime in Iran and what he said then applies today as well. This is a country where even those considered 'moderate' are talking about the annihilation of Israel and the Jewish people," he said.
"I didn't always agree with Arik but on this issue I completely agree. I've been recruited and have been recruiting for years to this effort and all who are concerned for the future of the state of Israel need to join the same effort, because we're not done fighting," Netanyahu went on to say.
"What Israel needs is means of defense and deterrence. The world needs to put heavy pressure on Iran - both economic and diplomatic," the prime minister asserted, adding that "Israel will not accept a placatory agreement with Iran that would allow it to continue in its race for the bomb, which is why we reserve the right to do everything in our power to stop the extremist regime in Tehran from arming itself with nuclear weapons."
"Arik didn't have any illusions about Iran, or the region, or the need to defend ourselves, nor the need to alert to dangers on time," Netanyahu added. "We also don't have any illusions about the dangers ahead and there's no doubt what needs to be done to thwart them. This is how we've been doing and this is how we'll continue acting."
