War Without End

Alpha

Top Officials Briefed on Pentagon Probe
By CURT ANDERSON, AP

WASHINGTON (AP) - Two high-ranking Defense Department officials have been briefed by FBI agents investigating a Pentagon analyst suspected of passing U.S. secrets about Iran to the Israeli government, officials said Monday.

The recent briefings of Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz and Douglas Feith, the undersecretary for policy, could indicate that the yearlong FBI probe is nearing a conclusion. No arrests have been made or charges announced.

Investigators were forced to accelerate activity in the case when news stories about it began appearing on Friday, according to two law enforcement officials speaking on condition of anonymity because the probe is ongoing. The publicity also may have hampered the ability of investigators to follow key leads and provided warning to potential targets, they said.

The central figure in the investigation is Larry Franklin, a Middle East analyst who works in Feith's office. Franklin was described by law enforcement officials as cooperating with the FBI. He has not responded to telephone messages seeking comment.

Investigators are trying to determine whether Franklin passed highly classified material about Bush administration policy on Iran to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the major Israeli lobbying group in Washington, and whether AIPAC in turn passed it to Israel.

AIPAC has acknowledged that the FBI has interviewed some of its employees but strongly denies any wrongdoing.

"We've cooperated in this investigation. We think there is nothing to it," said AIPAC attorney Nathan Lewin.

Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said Monday that meetings between Israeli Embassy employees in Washington and U.S. government officials are commonplace, and that the two governments routinely share secrets.

"Israel and the United States have intimate ties ... and the information being exchanged is much more classified than any conversation that may have taken place," Shalom told reporters in Israel.

The U.S. officials familiar with Feith's briefing, which occurred Sunday at his office in the Pentagon, said he was told the investigation's focus inside the Defense Department was limited to Franklin. Other senior Defense Department and State Department officials have also been interviewed or briefed by the FBI, but the officials would provide no other names.

So far, little light has been shed on what might have motivated Franklin to allegedly pass on the secret Iran material.

Israel has said Iran's ambitions to become a nuclear power pose the single greatest threat to the Jewish state. The United States has strongly backed an Israeli effort to block nuclear development in Iran, with President Bush including Iran in his "axis of evil" along with Iraq and North Korea.

AIPAC, which is instrumental in procuring some $3 billion in annual U.S. aid to Israel, lists stopping the Iranian threat as its top priority. AIPAC boasts more than 65,000 members in all 50 states.

Rep. Roy Blunt of Missouri, third-ranking Republican in the House, praised AIPAC on Monday for working with both parties in Congress.

"While the House will want to look carefully at any allegations that might endanger our national security," Blunt said in a statement, "it will begin that look with a record of great confidence in our relationship with AIPAC and our strongest ally and the only democracy in the Middle East, Israel."

Also Monday, Israeli officials confirmed that a senior Israeli diplomat in Washington has met with Franklin. Those officials, also speaking on condition of anonymity, identified the diplomat as Naor Gilon, head of the Israeli Embassy's political department.

Gilon told the Israeli newspaper Maariv that he did nothing wrong but was concerned that he may no longer be able to work in Washington because of the investigation.

"Now, people will be scared to talk with me," Gilon said in a story published Monday.

An Israeli official in Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity, said no one at the Israeli Embassy in Washington had been interviewed by the FBI.

Associated Press writers Barry Schweid in Washington and Karin Laub in Jerusalem contributed to this report.

Alpha

From: TOOL

Date: Tue, 31 Aug 2004 07:37:42 EDT
Subject: Israeli ministers urged to keep low profile on Iran nuclear issue

Cockroaches going under rocks.

Israeli ministers urged to keep low profile on Iran nuclear issue

JERUSALEM (AFP) Aug 30, 2004
The director of Israeli military intelligence Aharon Zeevi urged government ministers Monday to leave it to the United States and the European Union to take the lead in preventing archfoe Iran developing nuclear weapons.
"Israel must not take centre stage on this issue, but instead leave space for the Americans and Europeans to handle this issue," Zeevi told a cabinet meeting, according to an aide of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

"Iran's nuclear programme threatens not only Israel but also the Gulf states and Europe.

"Any hasty declaration (by Israel) can only harm international (non-proliferation) efforts. It would be much better for us to maintain a low profile.

"2005 will be the decisive year in which it will become apparent whether Iran is going to follow North Korea and go nuclear despite the international pressure."

Justice Minister Yossef Lapid said the government could not ignore the seriousness of the issue.

"Iran and not the bombings (of Palestinian militants) are the real threat to Israel. That's why we have to deploy all our efforts and resources to face the challenge," the Sharon aide quoted him as saying.

The prime minister replied that the relevant government agencies were "constantly following the issue and making all necessary efforts."

In recent weeks, Iran has shown increasing nervousness about the possibility of a preemptive Israeli attack on its nuclear facilities and has warned that it would not to hesitate to strike back.

In 1981, Israeli warplanes took out Iraq's French-built Osirak nuclear reactor.

http://www.spacewar.com/2004/040830134521.iwk7ifu2.html

Alpha

Alpha · Posted: Tue Aug 31, 2004 1:07 pm Post subject: culprits

From: TOOL
Date: Tue, 31 Aug 2004 07:06:07 EDT
Subject: culprits

The Jerusalem Post reported that the AIPAC officials involved were Steven Rosen and Keith Weissman, and that they have spoken to federal investigators.

Rosen is AIPAC's director of research and considered one of the most influential people in the organization. He has been with AIPAC since 1982, and mentored both Howard Kohr, AIPAC's current executive director, and Martin Indyk, the former U.S. ambassador to Israel.

Weissman is deputy director of foreign policy issues and specializes in relations with Iran, Syria and Turkey.

AIPAC would not confirm or deny the reports.

http://www.jta.org/page_view_story.asp?intarticleid=14440&intcategoryid=3
DeleteReplyForwardSpam Move...

Alpha

Rafsanjani Encourages White House Politicians to Think Deeply

Tehran, Aug 27, IRNA --

Interim Tehran Friday Prayer leader
Hojatoleslam Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani
encouraged the "occupiers of Iraq and White House politicians"
to think deeply and "take lessons from Najaf incidents."

Addressing thousands of worshipers at Tehran University`s central
campus, the head of Iran`s Expediency council added, "The main point
is that an occupier country fights for 3 weeks quite resolutely
against a group of defenseless, but selfless Muslims who merely relied on their strong will, killing many, and destroying greatly, without achieving any tangible results."

Rafsanjani added, "The Americans need to hesitate a bit and
contemplate on the point why they could not defeat the people who
absolutely relied on no power`s support."

He considered the armed struggle of the "Mujahids" and combatants
against the aggressor occupier forces, and the massive welcome of the
Iraq nation to Ayatollah Sistani`s call for peaceful march toward
Najaf, "two popular moves", arguing, "Both the armed struggle and the
peaceful and kindhearted political move of a cleric well acquainted
with the people`s problems are democratic and popular moves."

The former Iranian president stressed, "The US forces, relying on
their most advanced military equipment, failed to intimidate the
resistance fighters in Najaf, since if they had managed to do so, the
fight would have halted a lot earlier, but we all know that did not
happen."

Evaluating the beginning of the Najaf crisis as "quite amazing",
Rafsanjani assured all, "It goes without saying that the initial
stages of Najaf incidence were based on a comprehensive, premeditated
planning and the occupiers were fully ready for suppressing the
resistance forces, and that was not restricted to Najaf, either."

He emphasized, "The occupier Americans wished to harness all their
opponents through intimidation and threat, and sent that message by
launching a wild massacre of the Iraqi nation in Najaf and other Iraqi cities, but they gained the opposite feedback."

The interim Friday prayer leader said, "The return of a
73-year-old source of jurisprudence after a sensitive heart surgery to a crisis stricken country, without any body guards and going the
distance from border to Najaf along with the people, was truly a
political maneuver that the White House advisors need to study
deeply."

Rafsanjani compared that move with the late Imam`s departure from
Paris, on his own free will, and his arrival in Tehran, despite the
ousted Shah`s fiddle supporters` will, which "broke the backbone of
the former Iranian regime."

He said, "The Americans have still not thoroughly understood the
realities within the Islamic world and I expect the White House to
consider my remarks as a warning, heed the sheer and prevailing
realities, and stop creating so much trouble for the nations around
the globe."

Rafsanjani quoted "some US dailies and magazine" as evaluating the
Najaf attack "the most stupid move made by the White House in
contemporary history."

He reiterated, "Mr. Bush has personally admitted to making
mistakes in Iraq, particularly in evaluating the general situation
there."

Rafsanjani emphasized, "What kind of a global management are you
putting on display? The power that claims to be the top manager of the whole world makes such a big mistake, and creates such a big mess in Najaf, the sum of whose conduct is merely massacring the Muslims and destroying some of the holiest Islamic cities."

Referring to an electronic billboard recently erected in New
York`s Central Square which displays the expenses of Iraq war to the
moment, Rafsanjani said, "Up to Wednesday, August 25th, the Iraq war
had cost $134.5 billion, and each day some $177 million is added to
that amount, if there are not unexpected incidents, and yet, the
United States has achieved no tangible result in Iraq."

He further elaborated, "The Americans spend an average $122,820
per minute just to keep killing the Iraqi civilians and create more
crimes."

The former Iranian president said, "I want to send a message to
the Americans from this tribune and that is hesitate for a second to
evaluate the conduct of the other side, and then experience a
humanitarian solution to the existing problem."

Rafsanjani added, "Had you spent a quarter of this huge amount for
paying back a part of your debts to those Third World nations whom you have exploited their resources as a colonialist power, in the form of scientific, food stuff, and technical assistance, you would have harvested much greater outcomes."

He emphasized, "The only result of the policy you are perusing
presently would be inflicting heavier human and material losses,
since keeping in mind the rising oil prices at international markets,
you need to compare your expenses to what you gain."

Rafsanjani said, "You not only did not secure your grandeur at
International level, but were severely belittled, and Najaf today is
the symbol of resistance in contemporary history, above Stalingrad
that formerly held that status."

The head of the Expediency Council emphasized, "You (Americans)
are leading a war against the mosques around the globe, and against
Islam`s path and Islamic piety and this war would yield no benefits
for you."

Rafsanjani reiterated, "Of course, we can see signs of coming to
sense in some US officials` conduct, and even in nuclear issues, where they unfairly accused us of having military intentions, they are recently showing a certain amount of rationalism, but this, too, could be a new deceit."

The head of the Expediency Council said, "Meanwhile, we invite you
to observe rationalism, and we believe if you really wish to push
forth reforms, you can rely on rationalism, cooperation, and
collaboration, gain the assistance of a large number of people."

Rafsanjani added, "Yet, if your only objective is securing your
hegemony, and assuring the US monopoly, aimed at looting the
resources of the world nations, I assure you that neither resorting to force, nor resorting to politics and deceit, you cannot achieve
that objective."

The head of the Expediency Council meanwhile expressed hope that
President Mohammad Khatami`s cabinet would succeed in remaining one
year of his tenure success in solving the people`s acute problems,
such as unemployment and inflation, and putting back on trail the
important projects whose process of execution have been halted, so
that his government would succeed in presenting a worthy record to the esteemed nation.

2329/1771

Alpha

Look at this Jewish AP writer try to make out that Iran is such a threat to the USA.... Iran is not a threat to USA (unless the USA continues to wage wars for Israel in the Middle East like it has done in Iraq), but it Iran does oppose the Zionist land grabbing in Lebanon and in the Israeli (illegally occupied) territories of the West Bank and Gaza:

http://www.nowarforisrael.com

Iran Poses Vexing Problems for U.S.

Tue Aug 31, 5:31 PM ET

By KEN GUGGENHEIM, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Iran, a country that has bedeviled the United States for decades, could prove to be the biggest foreign policy challenge facing whoever is the next president. The messy Iraq (news - web sites) war and a spy scandal linking Pentagon (news - web sites) and Israeli officials could complicate U.S. hopes of halting Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Both President Bush (news - web sites) and Democratic nominee John Kerry (news - web sites) say they want to use diplomacy — although with different approaches — to prevent what could be a nightmare scenario for the United States: a nuclear-armed, hostile Islamic state in the volatile Middle East.

But the United States' ability to sound an international alarm on Iran has been damaged after much of its intelligence on Saddam Hussein (news - web sites)'s weapons programs proved to be wrong. And its credibility could be further hurt by suspicions that a Pentagon official passed secrets about Iran to Israel.

Neither Bush nor Kerry advocates a pre-emptive strike on Iran. "The military option is always the last option for a president, not the first," Bush said in an interview broadcast Tuesday on NBC's "Today" show.

Yet Iran, by many standards, poses a greater threat to the United States than Saddam ever did.

As they did with Iraq, U.S. officials suspect Iran has chemical and biological weapons. But Iran's nuclear program is much more advanced than Saddam's program was believed to be. U.S. officials say Iran could produce weapons-grade uranium within a year and a nuclear weapon three years after that.

Iran says its nuclear program is for making electricity, not weapons.

The United States has long considered Iran the world's most active state sponsor of terror. Iran has supported militant Palestinian groups and U.S. officials say it has provided safe-haven for al-Qaida members.

And even though Iran is more democratic than other nations in the region, the United States continues to condemn its human rights record.

In 2001, Bush called Iran part of an "axis of evil," along with Iraq and North Korea (news - web sites). Yet his administration has been divided on how to deal with it. Some, mostly in the Pentagon, favor a tougher approach. Others, mostly in the State Department, believe some accommodation is possible with Iranian moderates.

Tehran has offered some signs of seeking better relations with the United States, providing some cooperation on narcotics policy and in the war in Afghanistan (news - web sites). A State Department paper says relations with Iran "are frequently confused and contradictory due to Iran's oscillation between pragmatic and ideological concerns."

In a speech Monday, Democratic vice presidential candidate John Edwards (news - web sites) said the Bush administration "has stood on the sidelines" while both Iran and North Korea "advanced their nuclear programs."

Kerry holds out some hope that a negotiated solution with Iran is possible. He said the United States and other nations should "call their bluff" by offering nuclear fuel for peaceful purposes, then taking back the spent fuel so it can't be used for weapons.

If that process fails, the United States could try to ensure that the International Atomic Energy Agency takes the issue to the U.N. Security Council, where Iran could face sanctions.

Bush administration officials have suggested that it is too late for incentives. National security adviser Condoleezza Rice (news - web sites) said recently that Iran "has to be isolated in its bad behavior, not engaged."

The administration is expected to request Security Council action if the IAEA condemns Iran at a meeting Sept. 13.

Yet prospects for action at the U.N. are uncertain. Russia, which is building Iran's nuclear reactor, has a veto. Other council members also have trade relationships with Iran.

Bush has demanded that Iran give up its nuclear program, but it's unclear what he would do if Iran refuses and the United Nations (news - web sites) doesn't act.

Winning either domestic or international support for military action against Iran would be difficult.

Invading Iran has never seemed a credible option, said Robert Malley, an adviser to President Clinton (news - web sites) on Middle East issues. "I think it has become far less so after what has happened in Iraq," he said.

Yet Raymond Tanter of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said he believes the next president will have little choice but to support the main Iranian opposition group, the MEK.

That group, however, is on the State Department's list of terrorist organizations and few politicians openly support it.

And Tanter says support for either military action or for using the MEK could be undermined by the investigation into whether Larry Franklin, a Middle East analyst at the Pentagon, provided classified information on Iran to Israel.

"Those people who would say unleash the MEK could be accused now of following a Zionist agenda," Tanter said. "The Franklin flap is quite damaging. It plays into Iran's hand."

Alpha

http://www.truthout.org/docs_04/090204A.shtml

How Soon Will the U.S. or Israel Bomb Iran?
By Steve Weissman
t r u t h o u t | Perspective

Thursday 02 September 2004

I can just hear the Presidential conversation. "Did I say Iraq backed
al-Qaeda?" he asks with a boyish grin. "Oh, heck, I meant Iran. I
always get those
two mixed up."

What should Iran do? What would you do if you were an Iranian
Ayatollah?

The President of the United States has branded Iran part of the "Axis
of
Evil." He has demanded that Iran "abandon her nuclear ambitions." He
has claimed
the right to wage pre-emptive war against any enemy he chooses.

To add weight to these threats, the U.S. House of Representatives
passed a
resolution on May 6, 2004, calling on the president "to use all
appropriate
means to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons." The vote was
overwhelming: 376 for, three against. On July 22, the Senate passed a
similar resolution
with wording only slight less inflammatory.

The Americans now have nearly 150,000 troops just across the border
in
Iraq. They also have aircraft and missiles in easy striking distance,
as do the
Israelis, who - as the New Yorker's Sy Hersh reported - are currently
working
with the Kurds to make raids into Iran.

Put yourself in Israel's shoes. The Iranians are building a major
nuclear
industry, with the ability to enrich bomb-grade Uranium-238 and
reprocess
plutonium from spent nuclear fuel rods. Iran has facilities in Tehran,
Bushehr,
Natanz, and Arak, and could soon produce 15-20 nuclear weapons a year,
according
to the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has already found traces of
the
bomb-grade U-238 in Natanz and Tehran. The Iranians say this is only
contamination
from used centrifuges they bought from other countries.

An Iranian Bomb would challenge Israel's nuclear monopoly in the
Middle
East, creating a short-range, hair-trigger stand-off that would
continually
encourage each side to strike first before the other could.

Now think like an American neo-conservative. You and your fellow
policy
wonks have struggled for years to persuade both Democrats and
Republicans in
Washington and successive Likkud governments in Tel Aviv to play
hardball
throughout the Middle East. You urged them to expand control over the
world's
diminishing supply of oil and to overthrow nasty regimes, especially in
Iraq and Iran.

Your neo-con colleagues currently hold key posts in the Pentagon and
elsewhere in Washington, but your policies and performance have made a
hash of Iraq,
causing President Bush to turn increasingly to other advisors. Worse,
Mr.
Bush could lose the November election amidst a burgeoning spy scandal
that widely
paints neo-cons, whether Christian or Jewish, as not-to-be-trusted
Israeli
agents.

As in the perfect storm, the activities of the three groups - Iranian
Ayatollahs, Israeli Likkudniks, and American neo-cons - are now
creating just the
right conditions for a ghastly outcome - an aerial attack on Iran's
nuclear
installations. While no one can predict with certainty where the
madness might
lead, it would clearly isolate Israel and the United States even more
from most
of the world, unify rival Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims, and encourage the
Iranians to intervene massively in Iraq.

On the other hand, an October Surprise to make America safe from an
Islamic
Bomb might help Mr. Bush win a close election.

Can anything stop an attack on Iran, whether before the elections or
- as I
think more likely - after? At this juncture, even a cockeyed optimist
has
difficulty seeing much hope.

From where they stand, the Iranian leaders have little choice but to
press
ahead with their quest for nuclear weapons. They may say - as did the
Pakistanis, Indians, and Israelis before them - that they want only
peaceful uses of
atomic energy. They may see nuclear power as the best way to meet a
growing
population's demand for electricity. In fact, much of the program began
under the
Shah, and with American blessings. But the Bush Administration has
given Iran
the strongest argument yet for wanting atomic bombs - and the missiles
to
drop them on Tel Aviv. Nothing less seems as likely to hold the
pre-emptive
Bushies at bay.

Given the way atomic energy works, the Iranians could move ahead with
an
entirely peaceful program to produce electricity, as they say they are
doing.
They could allow full inspections and monitoring from the International
Atomic
Energy Agency. But once they reprocess plutonium or enrich Uranium 238
in
sufficient quantities, they are only weeks away from having an atomic
bomb.

Senators Kerry and Edwards, the Democratic contenders, have suggested
offering Iran "a great bargain." If the Iranians give up their capacity
to produce
bomb-grade materials and accept full supervision to ensure that they
have,
other countries - including the United States - will provide whatever
nuclear
fuel Iran needs.

It's a great start. But a Kerry Administration would also have to
offer
security guarantees far beyond any yet mentioned - or any they could
easily
mention. Too many Americans still remember with bitterness the pictures
of
Ayatollah Khomeini's young supporters holding fifty-two of our fellow
citizens as
blindfolded hostages. The Great Satan, as the Iranians called us, does
not forgive
and forget without an enormous effort.

Nor would the Iranians find it easy to overcome their rational fears.
As
Shia Muslims, with historic and religious interests in the Shia areas
of Iraq,
they would increasingly bump up against the Americans, who show no sign
of
leaving no matter who wins the November election. Even if President
Kerry could
contain the inevitable conflicts, some future president could easily
return to
the evil-hunting crusades of the current incumbent. Better a nuke in
the hand,
which some analysts believe the Iranians could have as early as 2006.

For the Israeli Likkudniks, and for me personally, the situation
looks like
déjà vu all over again. We all saw the same thing back in 1981, when
Prime
Minister Menachem Begin took on the French government of then-Prime
Minister
Jacques Chirac, which was helping Saddam Hussein build his OSIRAK
nuclear reactor
near Baghdad. Israel's Mossad led the charge. In April 1979, secret
saboteurs
entered a small French engineering firm on the French Riviera in
Toulon,
where they dynamited the reactor core only hours before the Iraqis
could take
delivery. In June 1980, in a hotel room in Paris, an unknown intruder
bludgeoned
to death an Egyptian nuclear engineer who played a leading role on the
OSIRAK
project. In August, a series of bombings and telephone threats
terrorized
French and Italian engineering firms supplying equipment to OSIRAK.

During that time, Mossad was also secretly leaking information to
journalists about Pakistan's effort to build what Prime Minister
Zulfikar Bhutto called
his "Islamic Bomb." Among the journalists was a team from BBC's
Panorama, for
whom I worked. The Israelis, who would never meet me face-to-face,
could
never understand why a Nice Jewish Boy insisted on checking out first-
hand every
bit of information they proffered. In fact, our team discovered several
parts
of the Pakistani story Mossad had apparently missed. We also found an
Israeli-American defense analyst who boldly predicted on camera that
the Israelis
would bomb the Iraqi reactor, which they did on Sunday, June 7, 1981.

What a scoop! Breathlessly recounted in several books and articles,
the
daring Israeli attack still stands as a model of pre-emptive warfare,
which the
Israelis now threaten to repeat on Iran. According to one recent news
story,
they have already rehearsed the bombing run, much as they did before
sending
their American-supplied F15's and F16's to wipe out OSIRAK.

But, before jumping on the bandwagon, please remember some
oft-forgotten
facts. Prime Minister Begin rushed the attack in part because he feared
his
party would lose a close election. Seeing military action as the only
remedy, he
also feared that his opponent Shimon Peres would try working
diplomatically
with the newly elected French President Francois Mitterand, who had
already
ordered significant steps to safeguard the Iraqi reactor. On the other
side, one of
Begin's staunchest supporters for the attack was his Minister of
Agriculture,
Ariel Sharon.

For the American neo-cons, recent events could push them to become
even
more extreme. The Israeli spy flap involving retired Air Force Col.
Larry
Franklin focuses heavily on Iran, and the cooperation between leading
neo-cons, the
Israelis, and Iranian exiles to overthrow the Ayatollahs. There are
also
suggestions of improper Pentagon arms transfers to Israel, unauthorized
back-channel
dealings with foreign governments and private groups, and the question
of how
closely the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee, the chief
pro-Israeli
lobby group, works with the Sharon government.

All of this will terribly embarrass the neo-cons, who will grasp at
any
straw to divert attention from both their failures in Iraq and their
efforts
behind the scenes. Enlarging the Iraq war to Iran offers the perfect
solution. In
the advice often attributed to their Pentagon protector, Defense
Secretary
Donald Rumsfeld, "If you're having difficulty dealing with small
problems, make
them bigger."

-------

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Peace is patriotic!
Michael Santomauro
Editorial Director
253 West 72nd street #1711
New York, NY 10023
http://www.RePortersNoteBook.com
Available for Talk-Radio interviews 24hours 212-787-7891
http://reportersnotebook.com/newforum/indexforum.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The QUESTION:
To subscribe and grow with knowledge or
to unsubscribe and Die Stupid? Send an E-mail to:
RePorterNoteBook@aol.com

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Do you Yahoo!?
Win 1 of 4,000 free domain names from Yahoo! Enter now.

Alpha

Powell says U.N must act now on Iran weapons

By Sue Pleming

WASHINGTON, Sept 1 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said on Wednesday the time had come for the United Nations to take punitive action against Iran for its alleged nuclear weapons program.

Speaking to reporters flying back with him from a one-day trip to Panama, Powell said he would urge members of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), at its board meeting on Sept. 13, to refer the issue to the U.N. Security Council.

"We still believe that the Iranians are not fessing up to everything. They still have a program that, in our judgment, is a nuclear program designed to develop ultimately a nuclear weapon," said Powell.

"Our view is that it should have been referred to the (U.N. Security) Council long ago and that is still our position, that it ought to be referred to the Council."

He was responding to a new classified report from the U.N.'s IAEA, circulated on Wednesday, which said Iran planned an industrial-scale test of a uranium conversion facility soon.

Powell, who said his staff was still analyzing the report, said he planned to talk to European Union members Great Britain, France and Germany on Thursday as well as other members of the IAEA to try and reach a consensus.

While Washington would like the board to report Iran to the Security Council for violating its nonproliferation obligations, diplomats at the U.N. have said Washington has few supporters for such a step now.

Powell conceded it would likely be hard to get consensus for such a move. "There are a number of countries I think that would say, 'No, let's not do it yet; let's take another look at it in November.' We think there's enough now to do it, but I obviously have to hear what others have to say," he said.

Iran insists that the only purpose of its nuclear program is the peaceful generation of electricity and denies it has done any uranium enrichment close to the level needed to fuel a power plant, let alone weapons.

Powell's comments came after U.S. Under Secretary of State John Bolton issued a statement earlier on Wednesday accusing Iran of threatening global peace with its plans to process 37 tons of raw "yellowcake" uranium.

"Iran's announcements are further strong evidence of the compelling need to take Iran's nuclear program to the Security Council," said Bolton in a statement to Reuters earlier.

He also said the United States would continue to urge other members of the IAEA Board of Governors to deal with the "Iranian threat to international peace and security."

Asked whether the time had come to isolate, rather than to engage, Iran, Powell said he thought there could still be a diplomatic solution.

"Diplomacy never works until it works," he said. "I think there is still a diplomatic track here."

09/01/04 23:00 ET

Alpha

Updated: 01:44 AM EDT
U.S. Plans to Seek Sanctions Against Iran
By GEORGE GEDDA, AP

WASHINGTON (AP) - Secretary of State Colin Powell says the United States plans to press for a range of possible U.N. Security Council sanctions against Iran in response to what he describes as a concerted effort by that country to develop nuclear weapons.

Powell told reporters Wednesday night the United States will urge the United Nations' nuclear watchdog group on Sept. 13 in Vienna to refer the Iranian case to the U.N. Security Council for action.

"We're looking at the range of possible actions of a political, economic, diplomatic nature," Powell said.

He commented while flying home from Panama after attending the inauguration of Panamanian President Martin Torrijos.

In Vienna, the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency said earlier Wednesday that Iran plans to process tons of raw uranium and restart its centrifuges - two activities that could be used to make nuclear warheads.

U.S. diplomats at the meeting said the revelations provided further evidence that Iran's activities pose "a threat to international peace and security."

"Unless there are assurances that the international community can count on, I think it's appropriate that it (the Iran issue) be referred to the Security Council," Powell said.

He said it remains to be seen whether there is a consensus to do that now.

Diplomats said the IAEA report on Iran with the new disclosures was based on information provided by Iran's government. Iran insists its nuclear program is devoted to the peaceful generation of electricity.

Earlier Wednesday, Undersecretary of State John R. Bolton, the administration's point man on nuclear proliferation threats, said, "We view with great concern" revelations in the IAEA report that Iran is about to convert 37 tons of yellow cake uranium into uranium hexafluoride gas.

Uranium hexafluoride is spun in centrifuges to produce enriched uranium, which in turn can be used to generate power or make nuclear warheads, depending on the degree of enrichment.

The United States will continue to urge other members of the U.N. agency's board of governors "to join with us in this effort to deal with the Iranian threat to international peace and security," Bolton said.

Another senior Bush administration official, in an interview in which his identity was withheld, said Iran was positioning itself to produce 220 pounds of enriched uranium, enough for four nuclear weapons.

U.N. inspectors have been looking for evidence that Iran has a secret nuclear weapons program. Such a finding could be critical to the Bush administration's effort to gain support from the other 34 members of the agency to seek U.N. Security Council action.

Tom Casey, a State Department spokesman, said the report being circulated by the IAEA "continues to document the fact that through the past 18 years Iran has amassed a record of deception and denial about its nuclear activities."

Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry's campaign criticized the Bush administration for going to war against Iraq on what it called discredited grounds instead of acting sooner to marshal U.S. allies to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

The IAEA report shows "a leading state sponsor of terrorism is yet another step closer to nuclear weapons capability," said Susan Rice, Kerry's senior national security adviser. "Yet the Bush administration has stood on the sidelines while this nuclear program has advanced. ... It is past time for this administration to develop a tough and effective strategy for dealing with Iran."

09/02/04 01:42 EDT

Alpha

JINSA Zionist Jew Ledeen after Syria, Iran and Lebanon for Israel:

http://www.warwithoutend.co.uk/wake-up-america-your-government-is-hijacked-by-zionism/2004/09/04/jinsa-zionist-jew-ledeen-after-iran-syria-and-lebanon.php

War Without End

The global war against terror, news about the illegal invasion of Iraq, the corporate puppet presidents, the war criminal Tony Blair, September 11th 2001, the USS Liberty and New World Order crimes against humanity.

Israel to US: NOW FOR IRAN - page 2