PM calls for 'paralyzing sanctions' after Tehran announces it is moving ahead on enrichment

Israeli officials responded angrily to Iran's announcement that it would begin enriching uranium to a level of 20 percent, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urging the international community yesterday to impose "paralyzing sanctions" on the Islamic Republic.

A day earlier, Defense Minister Ehud Barak had also called for tough sanctions, saying the latest Iranian move constitutes additional proof that Tehran is thumbing its nose at the entire world. And in response to Iranian spiritual leader Ali Khamenei's statement that Israel is fated to disappear, Barak added, "A regime that tramples its own people - in the end, its people will trample it."

Netanyahu recently ordered all his senior ministers to minimize public statements about Iran, particularly threats. It seems his plan for now is to have Israeli spokesmen focus on rigorous sanctions rather than threats of military action. Israel is stressing that any sanctions must be effective, as weak sanctions will achieve the opposite of their declared goal: They will bolster the Iranian regime's confidence.

Pursuant to this plan, Netanyahu did not mention the possibility of an Israeli military strike on Iran at a meeting with European Union ambassadors to Israel yesterday. Instead, he focused on sanctions. Several ambassadors said afterward that this line was apparently coordinated with the Americans, so as not to interfere with Washington's efforts to mobilize a coalition for additional sanctions.

"He didn't even mention the phrase 'all options are on the table,'" noted one.

France, which assumed the presidency of the UN Security Council a few days ago, has been working to draft a sanctions resolution. But China, which has veto power, is vehemently opposed to any sanctions, and Russia, which also has a veto, favors only weak sanctions. Thus Netanyahu told the ambassadors that if suitable sanctions cannot be imposed via the Security Council, it is critical for "the responsible nations of the world" to form an ad hoc coalition that would impose its own sanctions.

He also said that thwarting Iran's nuclear ambitions would improve prospects for peace with the Palestinians.