by Israel Hayom Staff
Head of the Israel Atomic Energy Commission tells International Atomic Energy Agency Iran's "outrageous threats" force Israel "to take action to defend its nuclear facilities"
Shimon Peres Negev Nuclear Research Center in Dimona
Israel has stepped
up security at its nuclear facilities, head of the Israel Atomic Energy
Commission and Israel's representative to the International Atomic
Energy Agency Zeev Snir said in an unusual statement on Tuesday during
the IAEA's 62nd General Conference.
"The covert Iranian nuclear weapons program
is a documented fact. The new information recently revealed by Israel
conclusively proves that Iranian activities were part of a
well-orchestrated plan to continue the development of nuclear weapons,"
Snir said.
"The IAEA Board of Governors has
unfortunately closed, within the context of the JCPOA [the 2015 nuclear
deal with Iran] the agenda item on the so-called 'Iranian Possible
Military Dimensions.' In light of these destabilizing elements, we
cannot ignore the repeated and explicit threats made by Iran and its
proxies to attack Israel's nuclear sites," he said.
"These outrageous threats require Israel to
take action and continue to protect and defend its nuclear facilities.
These facilities are constantly upgraded and reinforced, in line with
IAEA safety guidelines, in order to withstand any attack."
Snir said that "Israel has been an active
member of the agency since its establishment in 1957. Israel commits its
best human capital to its activities with the IAEA, and benefits from
the expertise and knowledge possessed by the agency."
The 62nd General Conference of the IAEA
took place just ahead of Yom Kippur, which began Tuesday evening. In his
speech, Snir stressed the holiness of the day to Jews worldwide, as a
time of introspection and reflection.
"During this time of year, we think about
what must be changed for us to live in peace. It is in this spirit of
reflection, that I convey my concern over the unrest in the Middle East.
The continuing turmoil in the region threatens peace and security
worldwide, and demands global attention," Snir said.
"Israel has repeatedly expressed its
willingness to collaborate with all of its neighbors on safety and
security issues. Unfortunately, however, the State of Israel is not even
recognized by several states in the Middle East. Specifically and
regrettably, the Islamic Republic of Iran openly and explicitly calls
for Israel's destruction," he pointed out, adding that "Iran and Syria
pose significant proliferation threats to the region and the world."
"Syria built an undeclared, secretive
military nuclear reactor at Deir ez-Zor. Such concealment of illicit
activities is a clear violation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and
Syria's safeguards obligations. The IAEA and the international community
should have taken action 10 years ago, and must take action now," Snir
said.
"We heard from the Iranian delegation
[Monday] about the importance of keeping the JCPOA alive. We must all
remember, however, that the JCPOA was conceived because of repeated
Iranian violations of its international obligations under the NPT. There
is no other country in the world with a JCPOA. Iran is the only country
with such an agreement, specifically because of these violations, and
because it threatens regional peace and security.
"For years, even prior to the JCPOA, Israel
has presented Iran's long-term vision to acquire military nuclear
capabilities. Israel has repeatedly underlined the importance of
confronting Iran with its lies and concealment efforts. The IAEA must
conduct a robust verification of Iran's clandestine activities," said
Snir.
Israel Hayom Staff
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/2018/09/20/israels-iaea-envoy-we-have-increased-security-at-nuclear-facilities/
Follow Middle East and Terrorism on Twitter
No comments:
Post a Comment