Israeli Leader: Iran President 'Obsessed'

Tue Feb 14, 7:50 PM ET

JERUSALEM - Iran's nuclear program threatens Israel's existence and could produce a nuclear bomb in two years, an influential Israeli lawmaker said Tuesday, while the acting prime minister accused Iran's president of being "obsessed with anti-Semitic hatred."

Yuval Steinitz, the chairman of Israel's powerful Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, was responding to news that Iran has begun the process of enriching uranium despite world pressure and the threat of U.N. Security Council action.

"It is now clear that the race began again and time is running out," Steinitz told The Associated Press, warning that if Iran is not stopped, it "will obtain a nuclear weapon in approximately two to three years, and this will be a devastating threat not only to Israel and the Middle East but also to Europe and the United States."

He said Iran already has missiles with a range to reach Israel and much of Europe and is trying to extend their range.

Steinitz said the Iranian program threatens Israel's existence, especially under the guidance of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

For years, Israeli officials have identified Iran as the country's biggest threat. That fear has heightened since the election of Ahmadinejad, who has called for Israel's destruction and questioned whether the Holocaust occurred.

Steinitz compared the Iranian leader to Hitler, whose Nazis tried to wipe out the Jewish population of Europe in World War II and killed 6 million Jews.

"It is clear for us that the Iranians are talking about liquidating Israel, and we learn from history that when someone is speaking about the annihilation of the Jews, we shouldn't disregard it as mere rhetoric," he said.

Acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he was extremely concerned by "an Iranian leader who seems to be obsessed with anti-Semitic hatred toward the Jewish people and the state of Israel."

"This has to stop. Leaders such as Ahmadinejad can't be allowed to use this language, to practice these policies, to threaten other countries the way they do and to spread this spirit of hatred and anti-Semitism," he said.

Earlier this month, the U.N. nuclear watchdog referred Iran to the U.N. Security Council, which has the power to impose political and economic sanctions.

Iran has said its nuclear program is strictly for the peaceful purpose of generating energy. But Israeli officials believe Iran is only several years away from possessing atomic weapons.

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Associated Press reporter Josef Federman contributed to this report.

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