Israeli former intelligence chief slams leadership stance on Iran April 28, 2012 - 18:11 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The former head of Israel's domestic intelligence agency has accused the country's leadership of "misleading" the public on the merits of a possible military strike on Iran. According to BBC News, Yuval Diskin said an attack might speed up any attempt by Iran to obtain a nuclear bomb. The comment follows remarks by other leading figures contradicting the prime minister and defense chief's views on the subject. Iran denies it is seeking nuclear arms. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak have repeatedly said Iran must be prevented from building nuclear weapons and have not ruled out military action to disrupt its nuclear program. Diskin, who stepped down as Shin Bet chief last year after six years, said he had "no faith in the current leadership" of Netanyahu and Barak. "I don't believe in a leadership that makes decisions based on messianic feelings," he said at a public meeting. "They are misleading the public on the Iran issue. They tell the public that if Israel acts, Iran won't have a nuclear bomb. This is misleading. Actually, many experts say that an Israeli attack would accelerate the Iranian nuclear race."   Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot".   Partner news |  Latest news Concept to complete Yerevan Cascade discussed at city hall  A conceptual proposal to complete the Cascade complex in downtown Yerevan has been presented by Jean-Michel Wilmotte.Pashinyan visits flood-hit region Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Saturday, June 8 visited the disaster area in the Lori province.€3.5 mln EU grant to support justice reforms in Armenia The European Union has paid €3.5 mln grant to Armenia within a €11mln program on Support to Justice Reforms.Yerevan reacts to Baku’s proposal to see Minsk Group abolition Alen Simonyan has declared that Armenia is taking steps aimed at concluding a peace treaty with Azerbaijan. |
