Prophecy and End Time Series. - Israel

[Shammu]

EXPERT: IRAN HAS NUCLEAR BOMB

ABU DHABI [MENL] -- Iran was said to have acquired a nuclear bomb.

A leading U.S. nuclear proliferation expert said Teheran obtained an atomic bomb about a decade ago from the nuclear black market. The expert said Iran sought to produce additional nuclear weapons through technology from Pakistan and other countries.

"The one functional device Iran has," Mansoor Ijaz, a U.S. nuclear scientist, said, "is the result of clandestine transfers from Pakistan's rogue black market nuclear scientist, Abdul Qadeer Khan, who sold the Iranians antiquated but highly effective Chinese bomb designs and parts, including spherical shell casings, spherical Krytron detonation switches and empirical software testing modules."

On Saturday, Iran threatened to launch a missile strike against the West. The commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Maj. Gen. Rahim Safavi, said Teheran could retaliate with the Shihab-3 intermediate-range missile against what he termed was British efforts to foment unrest in western Iran.

My note; I've never used this news site before, so I don't know how true the story is. ........ DW

[twobombs]

URL ?

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URL ?

I can't post the URL, they are asking for donations, breaking forum rules 2B. Google the title name, you will get a hit on that.

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Abbas not demanding Hamas recognize Israel: official
Wed Feb 1, 2006 8:22 AM ET168

RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - An official close to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas denied a report from Egypt on Wednesday that Hamas would have to recognize Israel to join the next government.

But the official, who declined to be identified, said the president would insist the new government commit to implementing past agreements with Israel.

Egypt's Intelligence Chief Omar Suleiman said earlier that Abbas, who had met Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo, had told Egypt he would not ask Hamas to form a government unless it recognizes the Jewish state.

Hamas's charter calls for Israel's destruction.

The Palestinian official said formal recognition of Israel would not be a prerequisite for Hamas or any Palestinian party joining a government.

"President Abbas's position is that he will ask any government to work on implementing the commitments of the Palestinian Authority", including an interim peace accord from 1993 and the U.S.-backed peace "road map", the official said.

"This has been his position and he has declared it immediately after the election," the official said, referring to the parliamentary balloting on January 25 in which Hamas won an upset victory over Abbas's long dominant Fatah movement.

Suleiman had earlier told reporters in Cairo Abbas was also demanding that Hamas stop violence and accept agreements which the Palestinians have signed with Israel.

"Hamas has to be committed to three issues -- first to stop violence, this should be its doctrine, second to be committed to all the agreements signed with Israel, third, to recognize the existence of Israel. If they don't do this, Abu Mazen (Abbas) will not ask them to form the government," Suleiman said.

Suleiman is President Mubarak's pointman on dealings with the Palestinians. He has mediated between Hamas and Abbas's Fatah movement and between Israelis and Palestinians.

Egypt is expected to be a prominent intermediary as Abbas and Hamas try to form a new government while averting the danger of foreign donors cutting off aid.

In its own comments on the Hamas victory, Egypt has not taken the position which Suleiman attributed to Abbas on formal recognition of Israel.

Abbas not demanding Hamas recognize Israel: official

[Shammu]

Saudi Arabia, Qatar to Fund Palestinians

By MOHAMMED DARAGHMEH, Associated Press Writer 30 minutes ago

RAMALLAH, West Bank - Israel froze the transfer of millions of dollars in tax rebates and customs payments to the
Palestinian Authority, and Palestinian officials said Wednesday that Saudi Arabia and Qatar have promised $33 million in quick aid to ease a severe budget crisis.

Saudi Arabia promised $20 million and Qatar pledged $13 million to help the Palestinian Authority pay January salaries to 137,000 employees, a senior Palestinian official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal was not final.

Earlier, Israel said it was suspending the transfer of $45 million in tax and customs revenues it collected in January while Western nations weigh whether to continue supporting the Palestinian Authority after Hamas, with its history of suicide bombings and rejection of Israel, forms a government.

The Israeli action could cause unrest in the West Bank and Gaza.

Western donors, led by the U.S. and EU, funnel about $900 million to the Palestinians each year, most of it designated for reconstruction projects in the impoverished Gaza Strip and West Bank. They are reconsidering that funding, demanding that Hamas recognize Israel and renounce violence.

The 137,000 people on the Palestinian Authority payroll, including almost 60,000 security officers, are supposed to receive their salaries Thursday. Even with promises of new aid, a Palestinian official said the checks would not be ready until Monday at the earliest.

Even a week's delay could mean hardship for large numbers of Palestinians. The Palestinian economy is in tatters after five years of violence with Israel. Unemployment is 22 percent, and even the meager government salaries support extended families in many cases.

Failure to pay the January salaries could pose the most difficult test yet for Hamas, which has resisted international demands to recognize Israel, disarm and renounce violence.

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev said Israel was "not out of sync" with the rest of the world in holding up the transfer. He said in the past, when Israel suspected the Palestinian Authority was using funds to support violence, Israel put its money into escrow accounts, releasing it later. He said that would be the practice this time, as well.

Palestinian deputy Finance Minister Jihad al-Wazir, said contacts are in progress with the Israelis and he was hopeful the funds could be transferred in the coming days. He said there are also contacts with world donors aimed at maintaining levels of foreign aid.

Economics Minister Mazen Sinokrot said Israel is in violation of interim peace accords, which require it to transfer the customs and taxes. "The Israeli side is not permitted legally to freeze the money of the Palestinian Authority, which is the money of the Palestinian people," he said, adding that Israel owes $53 million, not $45 million as it maintains.

Regev said Israel and the world cannot be expected to "finance people who believe that the solution is the destruction of Israel by suicide bombings and violent jihad."

In all, the Palestinian Authority needs some $116 million every month to cover the payroll. It has repeatedly borrowed from banks and received additional support from donor countries. However, the Palestinian Cabinet secretary, Samir Hleileh, said it appears unlikely the banks would lend to the government in times of uncertainty.

Saudi Arabia, Qatar to Fund Palestinians

[nChrist]

Saudi Arabia, Qatar to Fund Palestinians

Dreamweaver,

I really don't find this surprising at all since they have been supporting terrorists all along. Now they're just admitting it and making it public.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 23:2 NASB  He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.

[Shammu]

Dreamweaver,

I really don't find this surprising at all since they have been supporting terrorists all along. Now they're just admitting it and making it public.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 23:2 NASB  He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.

Brother, to Christians this isn't suprising. To a non-believer they may learn something new. Thats one of the reasons, is to show, we are closing in on the end times. When will it happen? only the Father knows he only gave us signs to look for.

[Shammu]

Caught in the fray: Turkey enters debate on Iran's nuclear program

By Yigal Schleifer, Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor Thu Feb 2, 3:00 AM ET

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - Blanketed in deep snow and shivering through subzero temperatures for most of the past two weeks, Turkey recently had to contend with yet another piece of chilling news. Supplies of natural gas from
Iran, used for heating homes and powering factories, were unexpectedly cut by almost 80 percent.

The Iranians, who supply close to a fifth of Turkey's natural-gas supply, blamed the shortfall on technical problems and increased demand at home.

But some Turkish analysts, noting Iran's ability to offer emergency gas supplies to Georgia during the same period, suggested another reason: By choking off the gas stream, Iran was sending a not-so-subtle message to its neighbor to stay out of any Western efforts to rein in its disputed nuclear program.

The timing would make sense. After staying on the sidelines of the international debate over Iran's nuclear efforts, Turkey has recently entered the fray.

During a mid-January press conference, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on Iran to adopt a more "moderate and amenable" approach in the diplomatic negotiations over its nuclear program.

"The continuation of Iran's nuclear program for peaceful ends is a natural right, but it is impossible to support it if it concerns [the development] of weapons of mass destruction," Erdogan said, echoing Western concerns.

p>US and European efforts to rein in Iran's nuclear program received a boost Monday, when Russia and China agreed to a resolution asking the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to refer Iran to the UN Security Council for sanctions at an emergency meeting in Vienna Thursday.

Meanwhile, the Turkish capital has been a revolving door of diplomatic traffic in recent months, with visits to Ankara from CIA chief Porter Goss and FBI head Robert Mueller, as well as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Israeli chief of staff Dan Halutz. According to reports in European and Turkish papers, one of the main reasons for the visits was to discuss Turkey's role in containing Iran's nuclear ambitions.

"My sense is that the Turkish strategic community, after some years of wariness but not deep concern, is now paying attention to the proliferation risks to Turkey," says Ian Lesser, a public-policy scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington specializing in Mediterranean security issues.

"There is much more of a debate in Turkey now then there had been because it's not a theoretical issue anymore."

Shared border and $4 billion in trade Turkey and Iran share a 310-mile border, and both Turkish and Iranian diplomats like to point out that the two Muslim neighbors have been at peace for centuries.

But Turkish analysts say that peace is based on a delicate balance of military power between the two countries, one that would be fundamentally disturbed if Iran were to acquire nuclear weapons.

"The bottom line is that Turkey can't accept an Iran with nuclear weapons. A nuclear-weapons-capable Iran or a nuclear-armed Iran is not in the interest of Turkey," says Mustafa Kibaroglu, an expert on nuclear nonproliferation issues at Bilkent University in Ankara.

The increasing international pressure on Iran comes at a time when the Turkish government, led by the moderately Islamic Justice and Development Party (AKP), has been working hard to improve relations with its neighbors, especially Iran. The past few years have seen bilateral trade between Turkey and Iran grow dramatically, shooting up from $1 billion in 2000 to $4 billion in 2005.

The government's approach, says Mr. Kibaroglu, has led to a division among Turkish policymakers about how to proceed on the Iran question. "I don't think the officials agree among themselves what to do," he says.

"The perception of the government, as far as I can see, doesn't fit the perception of the military. The military is more skeptical of Iran's intentions compared to the politicians who run the country."

US pressure versus regional security For now, analysts say, the split revolves around how aggressively Turkey should involve itself in diplomatic efforts to contain Iran's nuclear program.

Both the government and the military currently oppose any sort of military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, fearing that would dangerously inflame the region, analysts say.

Turkish officials say they are putting their country's position on the issue in line with the European Union, urging the use of diplomatic means to resolve the crisis and offering Turkey's services as a mediator between Iran and the West.

But some in Turkey are expressing concern that should there be a push for a military attack against Iran - particularly from the United States - Turkey might again find itself in a position similar to that before the 2003 invasion of
Iraq, when it was forced to choose between its regional security concerns and increasing alignment with the EU's soft-diplomacy approach, and US demands for facilitating military action.

"There is an understanding between the US and Israel and Turkey on the perception that Iran may become a threat if it develops nuclear weapons. There is also a common understanding with the rest of the world that [Iranian president Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad is becoming a dangerous leader with his very provocative and aggressive statements," says political analyst and columnist Sami Kohen in Istanbul.

"As far as all that is concerned, there is common ground. But the question is how do you deal with the problems, and that's where the differences are."

But the Wilson Center's Lesser says both Turkey and the US have learned the lessons of the events preceding the Iraqi invasion, which led to severe strains between Turkey and the US after the Turkish parliament refused to allow the American military to use Turkish soil for its operations.

"I don't think the United States has any assumptions about the Turkish willingness to facilitate a strike against Iran, especially after the Iraq experience," he says.

"I think there is a lot of caution on both sides right now."

Caught in the fray: Turkey enters debate on Iran's nuclear program

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Putin’s Comments on Hamas Spark Row Between Russia, Israel — Paper

Created: 02.02.2006 12:18 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 12:18 MSK, 20 hours 23 minutes ago

MosNews

Russia and Israel are on the verge of a diplomatic row after President Putin stated at a personal press-conference that Russia never viewed Hamas as a terrorist organization.

According to Moscow Kommersant daily, Israeli officials were shocked by Putin openly supporting Palestinian terrorists.

Commenting on Hamas recent victory at the Palestinian legislative elections at a press conference Tuesday, Putin said Russia never declared Hamas a terrorist organization, although it never supported its actions. The West should not cut financial aid because of the Hamas’s victory in the elections, he added.

“Hamas must refrain from radical statements, recognize Israel’s right to exist, and establish contacts with the international community,” Putin said. “We’re calling upon Hamas to consistently work in that direction.”

However recognizing Israel was just one of the three issues that the international community demands from Hamas in an agreement that Putin has also signed. Hamas has to be committed to three issues — to stop violence, to follow all the agreements signed with Israel and to recognize the existence of Israel.

Israeli authorities cannot accept a position that assesses terrorism in different countries differently.

“Hamas terror actions have killed more than 550 Israelis, many of them of Russian origin. We cannot see the difference between a bus explosion in Jerusalem and a terrorist attack in Moscow or Beslan,” unnamed Israely diplomat was quoted by Kommersant as saying.

Putin’s Comments on Hamas Spark Row Between Russia, Israel — Paper

[Shammu]

Iran's message to the west: back off or we retaliate

Ewen MacAskill and Simon Tisdall
Thursday February 2, 2006
The Guardian

Iran's foreign minister yesterday threatened immediate retaliation over a move to refer its nuclear activities to the United Nations security council in comments which deepen his country's confrontation with the international community.

In an interview with the Guardian - his first with western media - Manouchehr Mottaki accused the US of manufacturing the crisis and insisted there was still time to avoid a collision. But he warned that any military action by the US or Israel against Iran would have "severe consequences" and would be countered "by all means" at Iran's disposal.

Reflecting a hardening Iranian position, he threatened to end snap UN inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities and all other voluntary cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog, if Iran is referred to the UN today or tomorrow.

He also vowed that Iran will match any sanctions with measures of its own and warned that the west would quickly regret any resort to military action. The escalating crisis could further destabilise the Middle East by intensifying US and British difficulties in Iraq and Afghanistan, and could spell an end to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, which seeks to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons.

Mr Mottaki, who was appointed by Iran's hardline president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in September, said Iranian retaliation would come "simultaneously" with any decision on referral by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog, which meets in emergency session in Vienna today. Iran had not ruled out further steps, including withdrawal from the NPT and the permanent ejection of UN inspectors. "If the Iran dossier is reported to the security council, the additional protocol [which allows UN inspectors to conduct snap inspections] will be the first victim," he said.

Asked whether Iran was prepared to use its leverage in Iraq, where Iran has been accused of aiding attacks on British troops, and elsewhere in the region, Mr Mottaki said Tehran's actions would "correspond" to western political, military and economic pressure.

Israel, along with the US, has not ruled out air strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities if diplomacy fails. "Iran does not think that the Zionist regime is in a condition to engage in such a dangerous venture and they know how severe the possible Iranian response will be to its possible audacity," Mr Mottaki said. "Suffice to say that the Zionist regime, if they attack, will regret it." That message was underscored yesterday by Iran's defence minister who said that any attack on Iran would bring "a crushing response".

Mr Mottaki said the US, even with 200,000 troops on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan, was unable to impose its will on the region. "It would be better for President Bush to spend the second half of his presidency governing his country in a calmer manner." He urged Britain and other European countries to postpone a decision on UN referral until a scheduled meeting of the IAEA on March 6. "There's still time for our European friends to take a wise decision not to take wrong steps."

The foreign minister said Mr Bush had lied to the American people about Iran in his state of the union speech on Tuesday night and he rejected any chance of direct contacts with the US. The Guardian interview in London was held before Mr Mottaki had talks with Jack Straw, the foreign secretary. A Foreign Office spokesman said later: "Mottaki was warned not to walk away from the IAEA additional protocol or to make threats."

Today's showdown at the IAEA follows Iran's decision to resume uranium enrichment research last month, a move condemned by Britain, France and Germany as a breach of earlier undertakings. Western countries suspect Iran's civil nuclear programme will be used to manufacture nuclear weapons. But Iran says it has an inalienable right to civil nuclear power and denies seeking the bomb. Mr Bush, in his Tuesday speech, called Iran "a nation now held hostage by a small clerical elite that is isolating and repressing its people". But Mr Mottaki said the president's attempt to appeal to the Iranian people was doomed to failure. "Six days from now in the Ashura ceremony [a Shia Muslim festival] in Tehran, the Iranian people will respond to Mr Bush's comments."

Mr Ahmadinejad, who also rejected the US president's comments yesterday, described the US as a "hollow superpower" that is "tainted with the blood of nations".

Mr Mottaki came to London for a two-day conference on the future of Afghanistan. In a further indication of hostility towards Israel, he urged Hamas, winner of last week's Palestinian elections, to continue its policy of armed struggle. "The victory is the victory of the resistance," he said. "Our impression is they will insist on the continuation of resistance until the rights of the Palestinian people are secure."

Iran's message to the west: back off or we retaliat

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Iran Threatens Full-Scale Enrichment Work

By GEORGE JAHN, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 32 minutes ago

VIENNA, Austria - Iran threatened to retaliate Thursday in the face of almost certain referral to the U.N. Security Council for its nuclear activities, and the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said the dispute was "reaching a critical phase."

Ahead of a decision by the IAEA's 35-nation board, U.S. and European delegates turned to behind-the-scenes diplomacy to build the broadest possible support for reporting Iran to the council over concerns it is seeking nuclear weapons.

Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, Ali Larijani, in a letter made available to the AP, warned IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei that referral would leave Iran no choice but "to suspend all the voluntary measures and extra cooperation" with the IAEA — shorthand for reducing IAEA monitoring to a minimum.

Cuba, Venezuela, Syria and a few other nations at odds with Washington remained opposed to referral. India was said to be leaning toward supporting referral.

Diplomats accredited to the IAEA meeting said backing for Iran had shrunk among the U.N. nuclear watchdog's board since Russia and China swung their support behind referral at an overnight meeting with the United States, France and Britain — the other three permanent council members — that started Monday.

"There's a solid majority in favor of reporting," Gregory L. Schulte, the chief U.S. delegate to the IAEA, told The Associated Press. "There's even a more solid majority after Monday."

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack the number of nations expected to vote against referral were in the "low to single digits."

Iran remained defiant. Larijani told ElBaradei that his country would severely curtail agency inspections and resume uranium enrichment if reported to the council.

Furthermore, "all the peaceful nuclear activities being under voluntary suspension would be resumed without any restriction," said the letter, suggesting a resumption of work on full-scale uranium enrichment — a possible pathway to nuclear arms.

Iran has made such threats before. What was significant this time, however, was that the warnings were in the form of a formal notification to the head of the IAEA.

As Thursday's meeting adjourned, U.S. and European diplomats intensified efforts to widen support for a European draft resolution calling for Iran to be brought before the council.

ElBaradei said there was a "window of opportunity" to defuse the crisis, stressing that even if the issue is referred, the Security Council would not take up the issue before next month.

"We are reaching a critical phase but it is not a crisis," he said.

Iran, which claims its program is peaceful and aimed only at generating electricity, has repeatedly warned that such action would provoke it into doing exactly what the world wants it to renounce — starting full-scale uranium enrichment — as well as curtailing IAEA inspections.

Key members of the Security Council remained unmoved.

Grigory Berdennikov, Russia's chief IAEA delegate, reinforced Moscow's position outside the meeting, saying referral to the Security Council would send Iran "a serious signal."

Schulte agreed.

"It is time to send a clear and unequivocal message to the Iranian regime about the concerns of the international community by reporting this issue to the Security Council," he said.

Washington has waited years for international suspicions over Iran's nuclear ambitions to translate into support among board nations.

Only a simple majority is needed to approve the text, but the United States and its backers have held off pushing for earlier referral in hopes of building support for the measure. Support has grown since Jan. 10, when Iran stripped IAEA seals from enrichment equipment and announced it would restart the program.

While a broad majority of member nations support referral, a few countries that have policy disputes with Washington remain opposed — among them Cuba, Venezuela, Syria and Belarus.

"My delegation manifests its total disagreement with the proposal ... to bring it to the Security Council," said Venezuela's Gustavo Marques Marin. And Syria's Safwan Ghanem told reporters: "We will vote 'no.'"

A vote was expected Friday or Saturday. Countries opposed have the choice of voting against the text or abstaining.

Speaking for Germany, Britain and France — the three nations representing the European Union — German chief delegate Herbert Honsowitz told the meeting: "The time now has come for the Security Council to get involved."

The confidential draft resolution obtained by the AP "requests the director general to report to the Security Council" on steps Iran needs to take to dispel international suspicion it could be seeking to manufacture nuclear arms.

The draft expresses "serious concerns about Iran's nuclear program" and notes "the absence of confidence that Iran's nuclear program is exclusively for peaceful purposes."

If the board approves referral as expected, it will launch a protracted process that could end in Security Council sanctions for Tehran.

But no action is expected for weeks, if not months. Moscow and Beijing support referral only on condition that the council do nothing until at least March, when the board next meets to review the status of an IAEA inquiry into Iran's nuclear program and recommends further action.

"I am making very clear that the Security Council is not asked at this stage to take any action," ElBaradei said.

Berdennikov also told reporters that Russia "insists" no Security Council action be taken before March.

Iran Threatens Full-Scale Enrichment Work

[Shammu]

 Iran launched 'secret' rocket test
From correspondents in Berlin
February 04, 2006

IRAN secretly tested a new surface-to-surface missile (SSM) on January 17, seeking to establish the measurements needed for long-range missiles, the German daily Die Welt reported in its issue to appear today.

The test, conducted by members of the Revolutionary Guard led by Yahya Rahim Safavi, was successful, according to Western diplomats cited by the newspaper, which did not indicate the location where the test took place.

On January 28, Safavi said that Iran would use its ballistic missiles if it was attacked.

"Iran has a ballistic missile with a range of 2,000 kilometres," he said on Iranian public television.

"We do not intend to attack any country, but if we are attacked, we are capable of effectively responding. Our position is defensive."

Mr Safavi was referring to the Shahab-3 missiles that Iran possesses which can reach Israel and US bases in the Middle East.

Iran launched 'secret' rocket test

[Shammu]

Updated Feb. 4, 2006 18:09
Iran to 'immediately' resume uranium enrichment
By JPOST STAFF AND AP

Iran announced on Saturday that it would "immediately" set into motion steps to restart full-scale uranium enrichment and curtail the inspecting powers of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The statement came just minutes after the International Atomic Energy Agency's 35-nation board voted on referring Iran to the UN Security Council. The motion was approved by 27 of the member states. Five nations abstained, and only Cuba, Venezuela, and Syria opposed.

The approval of the draft was enabled by a compromise reached among the five permanent UNSC member states to delay its discussion of the matter until March. Following the compromise, China and Russia agreed to back the move, recruiting the support of several other states.

The resolution expresses "serious concerns about Iran's nuclear program." It recalls "Iran's many failures and breaches of its obligations" to the nonproliferation treaty. And it expresses "the absence of confidence that Iran's nuclear program is exclusively for peaceful purposes."

It requests IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei to "report to the Security Council" steps Iran needs to take to dispel suspicions about its nuclear ambitions.

The resolution calls on Iran to:

# Reestablish a freeze on uranium enrichment and related activities.
# Consider whether to stop construction of a heavy water reactor that could be the source of plutonium for weapons.
# Formally ratify an agreement allowing the IAEA greater inspecting authority and continue honoring the agreement before it is ratified.
# Give the IAEA additional power in its investigation of Iran's nuclear program, including "access to individuals" for interviews, as well as to documentation on its black-market nuclear purchases, equipment that could be used for nuclear and non-nuclear purposes and "certain military-owned workshops" where nuclear activities might be going on.

The document was enabled by a compromised reached between the United States and Egypt backing a nuclear-weapons-free middle east. A reference to Israel's alleged nuclear weapons.

A majority of board members backed referral but possible delay had loomed after United States and Egypt tangled over linking the issue to long-standing Arab demands that Israel - generally considered a nuclear power - give up such arms.

Diplomats familiar with the issue said France, Britain and Germany - the three European nations formally submitting the US-backed draft resolution calling for referral - had mediated between Cairo and Washington.

A Western diplomat at the meeting said the United States felt strongly about not linking its ally Israel to nuclear concerns in the Middle East when it considers Iran the real threat in the region. But the Americans agreed in the face of overwhelming support for inclusion of such a clause from its European allies spearheading the resolution.

Egypt, whose support of the resolution is key to swaying other Arab board members to join in backing it, was looking to make the linkage to satisfy broad domestic concerns, a senior European diplomat said.

Iran to 'immediately' resume uranium enrichment

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UNSC: Hamas must recognize Israel
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
UNITED NATIONS

The UN Security Council told Hamas on Friday that a future Palestinian government must recognize Israel and commit itself to a negotiated settlement of the Mideast conflict culminating in two independent states living side-by-side in peace.

The council commented for the first time on the Islamic group's surprise victory in the January 25 Palestinian elections in a presidential statement that was delayed because of Qatar's demand for more criticism of Israel.

It congratulated the Palestinian people "on an electoral process that was free, fair and secure" and commended all parties involved in preparing and conduction the election.

The council welcomed the commitment by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whose Fatah Party was defeated in the election, to the roadmap to peace drafted by the United Nations, the United States, the European Union and Russia. It also welcomed his commitment to a negotiated two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and previous agreements between the two parties.

"The Security Council expresses its view that all members of a future Palestinian government must be committed to the aforementioned instruments and principles," the council said in the statement read at a formal meeting by US Ambassador John Bolton, the current council president.

Leaders from Hamas and the Fatah party have met twice in recent days to discuss the formation of a new government following Hamas' landslide victory. Hamas has said it would like Fatah to join in a coalition, but senior Fatah leaders said they preferred to stay in the opposition.

The Security Council reaffirmed "its profound attachment to the vision of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side-by-side in peace and security" and reminded both parties of their obligations under the roadmap.

It underlined the need for the Palestinian Authority "to prevent terrorist attacks and dismantle the infrastructure of terror." Without naming Israel, it also called for a halt to settlement expansion and expressed concern about the route of the security barrier Israel is building to keep out Palestinian attackers.

UNSC: Hamas must recognize Israel

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Merkel: Iran nuke policy like Nazism
By ASSOCIATED PRESS

The International Atomic Energy Agency's vote Saturday to refer Iran to the UN Security Council met with the approval of many world leaders.

Most enthusiastically approved the motion, urging the international community to act hastily to prevent the nuclear armament of Teheran.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel advised on Saturday to act without delay to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, saying that Iran had "blatantly crossed the line."

The chancellor compared Iran's nuclear policy to the Nazi party's rise to power in Germany, warning that in the past the nations of the world refused to take a stance against concrete threats, enabling some of history's greatest catastrophes.

Merkel also condemned Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for his refusal to recognize Israel. "Any president that questions Israel's right to exist and questions the Holocaust cannot expect any tolerance from Germany," she warned.

Influential US Senator John McCain told America's allies Saturday that the military option could not be ruled out if diplomatic efforts fail to stop Iran developing a nuclear bomb.

"Every option must remain on the table," McCain told an international security conference. "There's only one thing worse than military action, that is a nuclear armed Iran."

Russia's Foreign Ministry on Saturday urged Iran to "respond constructively" to the UN nuclear watchdog's call for full cooperation.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin said in a statement that Moscow is calling on Teheran to "respond constructively to the (IAEA) board's call for full cooperation in resolving the remaining problems, including the restoration of a voluntary moratorium on all uranium enrichment works."

He did not mention an Iranian official statement saying Teheran considered Russia's enrichment offer dead following the IAEA decision to refer Iran to the UN Security Council.

US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Saturday urged the world to work for a "diplomatic solution" to halt the nuclear program of Iran, a nation he called the "leading state sponsor of terrorism."

According to prepared remarks for delivery at an international defense conference, Rumsfeld said the US stands "with the Iranian people, who want a peaceful, democratic future."

"The Iranian regime is today the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism," he said. "The world does not want, and must work together to prevent, a nuclear Iran."

Rumsfeld painted a stark picture of a lengthy war against terrorism that lies ahead, appealing to allies to show unity and increase military spending to defeat the threat of a "global extremist Islamic empire."

"We could choose to pretend, as some suggest, that the enemy is not at our doorstep. We could choose to believe, as some contend, that the threat is exaggerated.

"But those who would follow such a course must ask: what if they are wrong? What if at this moment, the enemy is counting on being underestimated, counting on being dismissed, and counting on our preoccupation," Rumsfeld said.

Merkel: Iran nuke policy like Nazism