Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu listens as U.S. President Barack Obama (R) speaks, during their meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington October 1, 2014.[/caption]Kuwaiti paper claims unnamed Israeli minister with good ties with the US administration 'revealed the attack plan to John Kerry.'
The Bethlehem-based news agencyMaanhas cited a Kuwaiti newspaper report Saturday, thatUS President Barack Obamathwarted anIsraelimilitary attack against Iran's nuclear facilities in 2014 by threatening toshootdownIsraelijets before they could reach their targets in Iran.
Following Obama's threat, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was reportedly forced to abort the planned Iran attack.
According toAl-Jarida, the Netanyahu government took the decision to strike Iran some time in 2014 soon after Israel had discovered the United States and Iran had been involved in secret talks over Irans nuclear program and were about to sign an agreement in that regard behind Israel's back.
The report claimed that an unnamedIsraeliminister who has good ties with theUS administrationrevealedthe attack plan to Secretary of StateJohn Kerry, and that Obama then threatened toshootdown theIsraelijets before they could reach their targets in Iran.
Al-Jaridaquoted "well-placed" sources as saying that Netanyahu, along with Minister of Defense Moshe Yaalon, and then-Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman, had decided to carry out airstrikes against Iran's nuclear program after consultations with top security commanders.
According to the report, Netanyahu and his commanders agreed after four nights of deliberations to task theIsraeliarmy's chief of staff, Benny Gantz, to prepare a qualitative operation against Iran's nuclear program. In addition, Netanyahu and his ministers decided to do whatever they could do to thwart a possible agreement between Iran and the White House because such an agreement is, allegedly, a threat to Israel's security.
The sources added that Gantz and his commanders prepared the requested plan and thatIsraelifighter jets trained for several weeks in order to make sure the plans would work successfully.Israelifighter jets reportedly even carried out experimental flights in Iran's airspace after they managed to break through radars.
Brzezinski's idea
Former US diplomat Zbigniew Brzezinski, who enthusiastically campaigned forObama in 2008, called on himto shootdown Israeliplanes if they attack Iran. They have to fly over our airspace in Iraq. Are we just going to sit there and watch? said the formernational security advisorto formerPresident Jimmy Carterin aninterview with theDaily Beast.
We have to be serious about denying them that right, he said. If they fly over, you go up and confront them. They have the choice of turning back or not. No one wishes for this but it could be a 'Liberty' in reverse."
Israel mistakenly attacked the American Liberty ship during the Six-Day War in 1967.
Brzezinski was a top candidate to become an official advisor to President Obama, but he was downgraded after Republican and pro-Israel Democratic charges during the campaign that Brzezinskis anti-Israel attitude would damage Obama at the polls.
By Arutz Sheva
