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From The TimesNovember 8, 2007

US fears Israeli strike against Iran over latest nuclear claim
Tom Baldwin in Washington, James Hider in Jerusalem and Francis
Elliott, Deputy Political Editor
A claim by President Ahmadinejad that Iran has 3,000 working uranium-
enriching centrifuges sent a tremor across the world yesterday amid
fears that Israel would respond by bombing the country’s nuclear
facilities.

Military sources in Washington said that the existence of such a
large number could be a “tipping point”, triggering an Israeli air
strike. The Pentagon is reluctant to take military action against
Iran, but officials say that Israel is a “different matter”. Amid
the international uproar, British MPs who were to have toured the
nuclear facility were backing out of their Iran trip.

Even before President Ahmadinejad’s announcement, a US defence
official told The Times yesterday: “Israel could do something when
they get to around 3,000 working centrifuges. The Pentagon is minded
to wait a little longer.” US experts say 3,000 machines running for
long periods could make enough enriched uranium for an atomic bomb
within a year.

Israel responded by serving notice that it would not tolerate a
nuclear Iran. “Talks never did, and never will, stop rockets,” said
Ehud Barak, the Defence Minister, after talks with the security
cabinet.

The US and Western allies believe that Iran is using its civilian
nuclear programme as a cover for weapon development. Tehran says
that it merely wants to generate electricity.

Concern about Israel’s intentions has been heightened by its recent
air strike on a suspected nuclear plant in Syria. In 1981 Israel
destroyed Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi nuclear reactor, and as the sole —
if undeclared — nuclear power in the region, it now considers Iran
the most serious threat to its security. Mr Ahmadinejad has called
for Israel to be “wiped off the map”.

Efraim Inbar, of the Begin-Sadat Centre for Strategic Studies in Tel
Aviv, said that the figure of 3,000 centrifuges would signal the
ability of Israel’s arch-foe to produce the nuclear material needed
for a warhead. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we do something if the
international community leaves us alone,” he said. “I think we
[Israel] are preparing for it. For Israel this is a critical
technological moment.”

Tehran says it plans to expand its enrichment programme to up to
54,000 centrifuges at Natanz in central Iran, which would amount to
industrial-scale uranium enrichment.

Mr Ahmadinejad, speaking yesterday at a rally, said that UN
sanctions had failed to halt uranium enrichment. “The world must
know that this nation will not give up one iota of its nuclear
rights . . . if they think they can get concessions from this
nation, they are badly mistaken,” he said. He has in the past
claimed that Iran succeeded in installing the 3,000 centrifuges at
its uranium enrichment facility but yesterday’s speech was the first
time he had said all of them were now operational.

The International Atomic Energy Authority recently put the figure at
closer to 2,000, with another 650 being tested. The IAEA said
yesterday: “We will be publishing a report next week. We will not
make any comment about this until then.” Javier Solana, the EU
foreign policy chief, is shortly to report on Iran’s willingness to
give up uranium enrichment in exchange for political and trade
incentives.

In London, at least five members of the Commons Foreign Affairs
Committee were refusing to take part in the planned trip to Iran,
arguing that it would hand the regime a propaganda coup. The visit,
to begin on Sunday, would be the first by a select committee since
15 British Service personnel were held in March. That incident and
evidence that the regime is supporting insurgencies in Afghanistan
and Iraq and planning to build a nuclear bomb has strained relations
with Britain.

About eight MPs, from all three main parties, are still planning to
spend four days in Iran next week.

Eric Illsley, a Labour MP who is one of those to have pulled out,
said: “I really don’t fancy having pictures of me next to an Iranian
nuclear facility beamed around the world.”

— Intelligence agencies have begun to vet all foreign postgraduates
applying to study sensitive scientific subjects in Britain. The aim
is to prevent Iranian students getting expertise in fields related
to producing weapons of mass destruction. Sixty Iranians have been
refused university places this year.
Times Online, The Times and The Sunday Times.

© Copyright 2007 Times Newspapers Ltd.