Friday, Sep 10, 2004
International
Iran fears Israeli attack on nuclear site
By Atul Aneja
MANAMA, SEPT. 9. Under the shadow of a possible pre-emptive Israeli air strike, Iran is threatening to position "human shields" around its nuclear facility in Bushehr, sharpening the focus on the row between Tel Aviv and Teheran over the Iranian nuclear programme.
A representative of an Iranian `committee' has declared that it was seeking volunteers for "suicide operations" in order to defend the Bushehr power station "which is the target of Israeli propaganda." The committee of the glorification of the martyrs of the World Islamic Movement said it was raising its "first suicide battalion" to protect the Bushehr facility. Iran is building an atomic power station in the port city of Bushehr with Russian help.
Prior to this announcement, Israel, perceiving that Iran is making a nuclear bomb that could target it, has been arguing for greater international pressure to restrain Teheran.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, told the Jerusalem Post on Tuesday: "I don't see that the [international] activity against them is enough to stop them from obtaining nuclear weapons." He pointed out that Iran was committed to the destruction of Israel.
U.K. sets deadline
Hasan Suroor reports from London:
In a new turn to the diplomatic tensions over Iran's nuclear programme, Britain has set a deadline until November for Teheran to suspend all work on facilities linked to production of a bomb. A failure to comply with the deadline could invite U.N. sanctions, it has warned. The move follows a meeting of Foreign Ministers of Britain, France and Germany who have been engaged in intensive efforts to defuse a potential international row over the issue.
The European 'troika' is under pressure from the U.S. to take a tougher line. Iran insists that its nuclear programme is meant purely for peaceful purposes.
British officials were today quoted as saying that they were looking at November as a "decision point" and if Teheran's response was not reassuring enough, the issue could be referred to the U.N. Security Council. The deadline coincides with the meeting of the board of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in November to review Iran's compliance with its `commitments' to wind down its nuclear programme.
Copyright © 2004, The Hindu.