PM preempts Obama TV interview pitching Iran deal to Israeli public: We must rely on ourselves
Netanyahu says deal paves way for many atom bombs and will fill Iran's coffers to fund more mischief.
By HERB KEINONPrime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) flanked by IDF Chief Lt.-Gen. Gadi Eisenkot (L) and Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon (R) as he visits the Home Front Command for nationwide drill(photo credit: KOBI GIDEON/GPO)
Hours before US President Barack Obama will tell the Israeli public in an interview on Channel 2 that the emerging deal with Iran is in the best interests of its security, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu slammed the deal and said Israel must “first and foremost” rely on itself.Netanyahu, speaking at the Home Command headquarters in the midst of a nationwide drill simulating conflict on multiple fronts, said the challenges facing Israel, including the threat of rocket and missile fire, are “piling up.”Most of the missiles and rockets aimed at Israel have been supplied by Iran, he said. “When speaking of Israelis' security I rely first and foremost on ourselves, and proof of this is the agreement emerging between the world powers and Iran,” he said.Not only will that deal “pave the way for Iran to atom bombs,” he said, but it will also give it an injection of billions of dollars.“With that money it can continue to arm our enemies with high trajectory weapons and other arms, and also arm its war and terror machine, which is acting against us and the Middle East, and which is much more dangerous than Islamic State's terror machine, which is also dangerous,” Netanyahu said.In an excerpt aired Monday night from the Obama interview to be shown in its entirety on Tuesday evening, the US president said he could demonstrate that “the best way to prevent Iran from having a nuclear weapon is a verifiable rough agreement.”