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Ahmadinejad greets the crowd as he begins his speech on Wednesday. (Reuters)
Last update - 20:11 08/11/2007
Report: Washington concerned Israel gearing up to attack Iran
By Haaretz Service and News Agencies
Tags: nuclear program, Iran 

Washington officials are concerned that Tehran's announcement that it has 3,000 centrifuges fully working in its controversial uranium enrichment program will lead to an Israeli strike on Iran, the British daily The Times reported on Thursday.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced the landmark development on Wednesday.

Pentagon sources in Washington fear Israel could move to attack the uranium enrichment plant, as U.S. officials and foreign media reports confirmed it did a suspected Syrian nuclear facilily on September 6.
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The Times report quoted military officials as saying that while the United States is hesitant to embark on an attack on Iran, Israel is a "different matter."

"We have now reached 3,000 machines," Ahmadinejad told thousands of Iranians gathered in Birjand, in eastern Iran, on Wednesday in a show of defiance of international demands to halt the program believed to be masking the country's nuclear arms efforts.

Ahmadinejad has in the past claimed that Iran succeeded in installing the 3,000 centrifuges at its uranium enrichment facility at Natanz. But Wednesday's claim was his first official statement that the plant is now fully operating all those centrifuges.

When Iran first announced launching the 3,000 centrifuges in April, the UN nuclear watchdog agency, the International Atomic Energy Agency, said Tehran had only 328 centrifuges up and running at Natanz's underground facility.

Mofaz calls on IAEA chief to resign

Deputy Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz called on Thursday for Mohamed ElBaradei to be replaced as head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, accusing him of complacency over Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Mofaz told Israel Radio that ElBaradei should be replaced because of his "irresponsible and slow actions" in dealing with Iran. Mofaz heads an Israeli team that regularly discusses strategic issues with the United States.

ElBaradei is expected to issue another report on November 22 on the progress of Iran's nuclear program, findings that could be key to whether the United Nations decides to impose a third set of sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

Bush defends World War Three comments on Iran
U.S. President George W. Bush defended in a television interview on Wednesday his recent comments suggesting Iran's nuclear ambitions might trigger World War Three and insisted he wanted a diplomatic solution.

Bush told a news conference last month that preventing Iran from building nuclear weapons would be a means of avoiding a new global conflict.

"The reason I said that is because this is a country that has defied the IAEA - in other words, didn't disclose all their program - have said they want to destroy Israel," Bush said in the interview with German broadcaster RTL.

"If you want to see World War Three, you know, a way to do that is to attack Israel with a nuclear weapon," Bush added. "And so I said, now is the time to move. It wasn't a prediction, nor a desire."

Asked whether there was a point when the United States would decide military action was the only possible option for dealing with Iran, Bush said: "I would never say that."

"I would say that we would always try to try diplomacy first," he said. "In other words, I - I've committed our troops into harm's way twice, and it's not a pleasant experience because I understand the consequences firsthand.

"And so I owe it to the American people to say that I've tried to solve this problem diplomatically. And that's exactly what I intend to do. And I believe we can do it, so long as the world works in concert."

Iran says its atomic work is to make electricity, not bombs.

The interview was conducted on Tuesday and RTL released the quotes on Wednesday ahead of a visit to Bush's Texas ranch by German Chancellor Angela Merkel later this week.


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      1.   of course those officials 09:51  |  cool 08/11/07
      2.   Monopoly on terror 09:56  |  Truth 08/11/07
      3.   israel must and will smash the iran threat as cowardly world look 09:57  |  don 08/11/07
      4.   An Israel-only operation - the Zionist wet dream 10:22  |  Clickfool 08/11/07
      5.   evil and religion 10:47  |  roger radford 08/11/07
      6.   Attacking Iran is a quicker route to World War III 10:55  |  Michael 08/11/07
      7.   # 3 Olmert cannot make that mistake 11:13  |  Adel 08/11/07
      8.   Wishful thinking from Sussex #4 11:34  |  Jonathan S 08/11/07
      9.   clickfools waterboarding 11:42  |  les 08/11/07
      10.   Liberate Palestine NOW!! 11:46  |  indrajaya 08/11/07
      11.   #6 Bush is right with the World War III 12:01  |  European 08/11/07
      12.   TO #4 12:09  |  LARRY 08/11/07
      13.   Liberate Jakarta Now 12:19  |  Steve 08/11/07
      14.   Washington concerned? 12:25  |  Walt 08/11/07
      15.   Attack Iran? Can Israel be that stupid? I hope so.. 12:25  |  Natallie Durson 08/11/07
      16.   Clickfool: You Are not in the Correct Mindset 12:29  |  Ovadiah ben Avraham 08/11/07
      17.   #8, JOHNATHON S shows lack of thinking once again 12:42  |  VIPER 08/11/07
      18.   Solved at Last: Natallie Durson is Really Elmer Fudd 12:47  |  Ovadiah ben Avraham 08/11/07
      19.   Iran,is a sovereign country and has the right to develop nukes, 12:48  |  lakshmi 08/11/07
      20.   #11, EUROPEAN, no clue at all 12:50  |  VIPER 08/11/07
      21.   ISRAEL,DON`T FEAR,GOD ALMIGHTY WILL SEND AN EARTHQUAKE, A TSUNAMI 12:54  |  VOICE of MOSHIACH))) 08/11/07
      22.   Natallie: Israel "Got Away" With a Strike in the Heart of Syria 12:55  |  Ovadiah ben Avraham 08/11/07
      23.   JUST GIVE IT A LIITLE TRY 12:57  |  indrajaya 08/11/07
      24.   Durson blinded by hate 13:05  |  Jonathan S 08/11/07
      25.   More Lies? 13:06  |  Iranian 08/11/07
      26.   AS USUAL, THE WORLD KNOWS THAT 13:07  |  Robert 08/11/07
      27.   For The MEEK shall INHERIT the Earth 13:12  |  u know it 08/11/07
      28.   The problem with Natalie Durson 13:25  |  David 08/11/07
      29.   Truth # 2 13:27  |  ari 08/11/07
      30.   Poor - Nat, soccer mums will be calling "bomb Iran" 13:40  |  British academic 08/11/07
      31.   No, it doesn`t, Jonathan S # 8 13:41  |  Clickfool 08/11/07
      32.   For Natallie Durson # 15 13:48  |  Clickfool 08/11/07
      33.   The end for Israel # 16 13:55  |  Clickfool 08/11/07
      34.   To 15- Durson, about time you started cycling. 13:55  |  Alan 08/11/07
      35.   For Voice of Moshiach 13:57  |  Jonathan S 08/11/07
      36.   Natalie Durston - Israel might not be that stupid 13:59  |  Mark Lincoln 08/11/07
      37.   For Ovadiah ben Avraham # 22 13:59  |  Clickfool 08/11/07
      38.   Sarkozy,Merkel Meetings in Washington 13:59  |  Jane 08/11/07
      39.   Israeli + Nukes = WW3 14:02  |  POP 08/11/07
      40.   For David in Melbourne on Natallie Durson # 28 14:06  |  Clickfool 08/11/07
      41.   Clickfool 14:08  |  cv 08/11/07
      42.   Caution with gloves off needed. 14:10  |  H.H.M 08/11/07
      43.   indrajaya - DON`T WORRY WE WILL 14:12  |  x 08/11/07
      44.   Of course Israel does, poor ClickFOOL 14:17  |  Jonathan S 08/11/07
      45.   #13 Liberate Jakarta Steve EXCELLENT POST 14:22  |  Petra 08/11/07
      46.   On North American Indians # 21 14:23  |  Clickfool 08/11/07
      47.   Nut A Lees at it again 14:29  |  Petra 08/11/07
      48.   For Jane #22 14:30  |  Jonathan S 08/11/07
      49.   #16 EXCELLENT RESPONSE!!!! 14:32  |  Petra 08/11/07
      50.   IRANS FINAL FARWELL 14:33  |  Petra 08/11/07
      51.   to #4 14:34  |  Concerned American 08/11/07
      52.   NUT A LEES AT UCLA? 14:37  |  Petra 08/11/07
      53.   IRANS FINAL FARWELL SHOULD SHE USE THEM 14:38  |  Petra 08/11/07
      54.   Israel Use One fighter jet to trigger there Nuke plant 14:39  |  Gaddiel 08/11/07
      55.   JUST GIVE IT A TRY, OKAY, WE WILL. 14:42  |  Petra 08/11/07
      56.   EXCELLENT JONATHAN, QUITE RIGHT!!! 14:49  |  Petra 08/11/07
      57.   Israel to use low yield nuclear weapons against Iran 14:52  |  Chris Linthwaite 08/11/07
      58.   more lies? What about your mini mouse leaders threats to Israel? 14:54  |  Petra 08/11/07
      59.   The meek the weak and the Muslim madness 14:57  |  Petra 08/11/07
      60.   The US won`t allow Israel to attack 14:57  |  Stephen Murray 08/11/07
      61.   The problem with NUT A LEE is 14:59  |  Petra 08/11/07
      62.   Palma GREAT POST!! BRAVO!! 15:00  |  Petra we3macs@verizo 08/11/07
      63.   Linthwaite # 57 and Clickfool # 32. You Made A Compelling 15:44  |  Eli 08/11/07
      64.   Stephen Murray and the determination of Israel 16:07  |  Jonathan S 08/11/07
      65.   Although I can understand the hysterical antipathy to Israel... 16:23  |  bat yam 08/11/07
      66.   aint gonna happen 16:28  |  Space 08/11/07
      67.   Indrajay, liberate Kurdistan now! 16:41  |  bobby 08/11/07
      68.   Jane - two birds, one stone 16:44  |  Mark Lincoln 08/11/07
      69.   U.S. controls israel, it will not do something that the US did 17:01  |  MAN 08/11/07
      70.   Republican sneak attack 17:14  |