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IAEA slams Mofaz remark that attack on Iran seems 'unavoidable'
By Reuters
Tags: Nuclear weapons, Iran 

Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Mohammed ElBaradei on Saturday rebuked remarks made by Transportation Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz, saying an attack against Iran seemed "unavoidable."

In an interview with the German newspaper Der Spiegel, the head of the United Nation's nuclear watchdog said "with unilateral military actions, countries are undermining international agreements, and we are at a historic turning point."

The Nobel Peace prize laureate condemned Iran's leadership, saying "the readiness of Iran's side to cooperate leaves a lot to be desired."
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Teheran's leadership "is sending a message to the entire world: we can build a bomb in relatively short time," ElBaradei added.

ElBaradei's words come in the wake of Mofaz's statement Friday that "if Iran continues with its program for developing nuclear weapons, we will attack it. The sanctions are ineffective. Attacking Iran, in order to stop its nuclear plans, will be unavoidable."

Iran demanded action from the UN Security Council in response to Mofaz' remarks in a letter submitted Saturday by Iranian UN Ambassador Mohammed Khazaee.

"Such a dangerous threat against a sovereign state and a member of the United Nations constitutes a manifest violation of international law and contravenes the most fundamental principles of the Charter of the United Nations, and, thus, requires a resolute and clear response on the part of the United Nations, particularly the Security Council," Khazaee's letter to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, dated June 6, said.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said Friday that the United States was committed to solving the Iranian nuclear threat through diplomatic multilateral means, in a response to Mofaz's statements Friday.

"I understand that Israel is very concerned about their future and their safety when they have a neighbor in their region - Iran - that says they want to wipe them off the map," Perino told reporters. "We are trying to solve this diplomatically," she explained.

Asked whether the United States was keeping military options open as a last resort with Iran, she said U.S. President George W. Bush had always said he "would never take any options off the table" but that Washington was pursuing multilateral diplomacy.

"The international community deserves to have the verification that that is true," she said of Iran's assertions that its nuclear ambitions are peaceful.

Earlier, White House spokesman Scott Stanzel, asked specifically whether the United States would support an Israeli strike on Iran, said, "I'm not going to talk about hypotheticals. I think we've been pretty clear in recent weeks and months about our approach on Iran."

The Bush administration has repeatedly said it wants to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue through diplomacy but has made clear that military options remain on the table as a last resort.

Iran has defied Western pressure to abandon its uranium enrichment projects, which it says are for peaceful electricity generation.

Tehran has also threatened to retaliate against Israel, believed to have the Middle East's only atomic arsenal, and U.S. targets in the Gulf if there is any attack on Iran.

The comments made by Mofaz, a former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff as well as former defense minister, was the most explicit threat yet against Iran from a member of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government, which, like the Bush administration, has preferred to hint at force as a last resort should United Nations Security Council sanctions fail to achieve the desired abandonment of nuclear development by Tehran.

Mofaz also said Friday that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who has called for Israel to be wiped off the map, "would disappear before Israel does."

Mofaz's remarks came as he and several other senior members of Olmert's Kadima Party prepare for a possible run for top office should a corruption scandal force the Israeli prime minister to step down.

Iranian-born Mofaz has been a main party rival of the Israeli prime minister, particularly following the 2006 elections when Olmert was forced to hand the defence portfolio to Labor, his main coalition partner, at Mofaz's expense.

Mofaz, who is also designated as a deputy prime minister, has remained privy to Israel's defense planning. He is a member of Olmert's security cabinet and leads regular strategic coordination talks with the U.S. State Department.

Israel sent warplanes to destroy Iraq's nuclear reactor in 1981.

A similar Israeli sortie over Syria last September razed what the U.S. administration said was a nascent nuclear reactor built with North Korean help. Syria denied having any such facility.

Independent analysts have questioned, however, whether Israel's armed forces can take on Iran alone, as its nuclear sites are numerous, distant and well-fortified.

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      1.   Attack on Iran, no matter which kind of plane used, is suicide. 16:03  |  DkS 06/06/08
      2.   Mofaz: I`ll huff and I`ll puff and I`ll blow your house down! 16:11  |  Natallie Durson 06/06/08
      3.   Israeli threats 16:12  |  Vinegar Hill. 06/06/08
      4.   Riduculous declarations by Mofaz.... 16:13  |  Esther 06/06/08
      5.   Mofaz.... 16:20  |  Esther 06/06/08
      6.   Israel is doomed if it attacks Iran. Israel will never survive 16:29  |  POP 06/06/08
      7.   No 16:52  |  Farhad 06/06/08
      8.   Mofaz expressing state terrorism 17:13  |  kaled 06/06/08
      9.   Do it already!! 17:26  |  John 06/06/08
      10.   Iran`s 17:27  |  Realist 06/06/08
      11.   I see Mushroom Clouds over Iran 17:29  |  ottomatik 06/06/08
      12.   Iran to Mofaz: You bark, but you don`t dare to bite 17:29  |  Aounist 06/06/08
      13.   WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN, MOFAZ, GOT ALONG WITH DAHLAN? 17:37  |  indrajaya 06/06/08
      14.   Ahmadinejad disappearing 17:43  |  W 06/06/08
      15.   Fine provided Israel does it alone... 17:46  |  Silvienne 06/06/08
      16.   Govern and guard- do not threat 17:48  |  Avrum 06/06/08
      17.   Israel. USA...Where`s the EU? 17:52  |  Pastor Joseph 06/06/08
      18.   Maybe it`s Mofaz who should disappear 18:02  |  Philip 06/06/08
      19.   Birds of a feather flock together 18:06  |  Marcel Frangieh 06/06/08
      20.   It`s Easy To Talk The Talk. 18:08  |  Cool B 06/06/08
      21.   If Israel touches Iran it will be unavoidable history too.. 18:08  |  Dutch 06/06/08
      22.   We are running out of time. 18:24  |  Jean Van Daem 06/06/08
      23.   Mofaz probably thinks this will help him to PM-ship 18:26  |  S 06/06/08
      24.   and OIL goes up another $6+ 18:39  |  candida 06/06/08
      25.   #1 Well Said 18:41  |  Pastor Joseph 06/06/08
      26.   Q: why hasnt israel taken care of things? 18:42  |  caretaker 06/06/08
      27.   Where`s the proof? 18:44  |  Douglas Evans 06/06/08
      28.   Israel cannot stop it...this is a fact 18:44  |  The Numbers 06/06/08
      29.   No end to war 18:46  |  Endless War 06/06/08
      30.   Karma 18:50  |  Tevye 06/06/08
      31.   Iranian Traitor 18:50  |  C`est Moi 06/06/08
      32.   bizarre 18:58  |  Bob 06/06/08
      33.   Zionism brought this upon Israel/itself 19:00  |  Harold 06/06/08
      34.   bizarre II 19:04  |  Bob 06/06/08
      35.   Dutch 19:13  |  Castor Troy 06/06/08
      36.   two nations in a now unavoidable collision course 19:17  |  Ordallie Nutcase 06/06/08
      37.   Marcel Frangieh 5 19:19  |  Plutonium 06/06/08
      38.   israel will crush Iran - just like it crushed hezbollah?? 19:20  |  gearoid 06/06/08
      39.   Iran threat 19:24  |  Gregor 06/06/08
      40.   Iran to Mofaz: You bark, but you don`t dare to bite 19:26  |  Aounist 06/06/08
      41.   Re S and the "crazy statement" 19:29  |  Esther 06/06/08
      42.   Mr Mofaz 19:32  |  Millicent 06/06/08
      43.   Silvienne @3 tank you for your support 19:39  |  Mofaz 06/06/08
      44.   to 17 19:40  |  Jozef 06/06/08
      45.   It won`t be pretty. 19:41  |  ManintheMiddle 06/06/08
      46.   Eh listen up! 19:48  |  Maurice 06/06/08
      47.   Another wild-eyed Israeli politician . . . 19:50  |  Maki 06/06/08
      48.   TO "ISRAELIS" 19:51  |  Mike 06/06/08
      49.   stupid rhetoric 19:57  |  igor 06/06/08
      50.   SILVIENNE # 8 19:59  |  ANDY 06/06/08
      51.   Millicent @33 I have a gas mask, I have a bomb shelter so OK 20:06  |  Mofaz 06/06/08
      52.   Esther @32 And what is wrong with that 20:09  |  Mofaz 06/06/08
      53.   US encirclement of Iran 20:11  |  Milo 06/06/08
      54.   The Fiddlers and their threats. 20:11  |  Stephen. 06/06/08
      55.   (23) Karma? Wrong! On the contrary Israel will have 20:13  |  Jew- and Bookburner 06/06/08
      56.   Iran has continually denied attempting to produce weapons 20:16  |  Concerned individual 06/06/08
      57.   at last a bit of transparency. well spoken, mofaz. 20:16  |  frenz 06/06/08
      58.   Gulliver in Lilliput 20:20  |  Keops 06/06/08
      59.   Iran is going to acquire Nuclear Technology 20:21  |  Rachel Stevens 06/06/08
      60.   Mr Mofaz reflects the true aggravation of Iranian Jews 20:22  |  Robert/Montreal 06/06/08
      61.   Wow even Silvienne understands the right to security 20:24  |  Robert/Montreal 06/06/08
      62.   #41 Mike in washington Israeli arabs are in Knesett 20:29  |  Robert/Montreal 06/06/08
      63.   Islam to Israel 20:31  |  Bob 06/06/08
      64.   Sushi Maki #40 But you haters all say Iranian Jews love their 20:33  |  Robert Lovell 06/06/08
      65.   #26 Harold what is Zionism by definition to you? 20:35  |  Robert/Montreal 06/06/08
      66.   Bob, Munich, straight talk of Mahmoud, isn´t it? 20:36  |  Jew- and Bookburner 06/06/08
      67.   The `unavoidable` attack 20:37  |  Natallie Durson 06/06/08
      68.   Philip @8 I prefer 1000 conventional rockets to one Nuclear bomb 20:41  |  Mofaz 06/06/08
      69.