Peres is losing his marbles...
Ha'aretz
Thus spoke he:
"Sooner or later, the world will discover that Iran has the aspiration to take over the Middle East and that it possesses colonial ambitions."
He made the comments after meeting with Israel's Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi, Yona Metzger.
Earlier Monday, Peres told Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday that Israel hoped every nation in the Middle East would attain freedom.
"The people of Israel want peace," Peres told the Palestinian leader by phone. "On the eve of the festival of Pesach, we are all praying for peace and freedom for every people in the region, and one must not lose hope on the way to peace."
Pesach, or Passover, is a Jewish holiday commemorating the Israelites' escape from enslavement in Egypt; as such, it is also known as the "Festival of Freedom."
Well, I guess every people on Earth sooner or later get their turn at playing the Master/slave game...
posted by Gert @ 1:43 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
Maybe Peres is exaggerating a bit about Iran, but it is certainly also an exaggeration to say he's losing his marbles. Iran doesn't want to take over the Middle East like the ancient Persian Empire, but it certainly does want to extend and deepen its influence.
As for the freedom part, yes, it is ironic for the president of Israel to talk about freedom for the Palestinians, but he has also worked toward the two-state solution when he was foreign minister and prime minister. It isn't as ridiculous as Netanyahu or Lieberman talking about freedom for all Middle Eastern nations.
Emm:
If you must know, Peres was once my favourite Israeli politician. Now this is a man who on TV aggressively tells lies like "Israel never attacks anyone!", I call that losing one's mind. Not objective but not too far off either.
Iran wants influence. Such a large and populated country cannot be denied that. Everyone wants influence...
I must admit his "Netanyahu is a peacenik" European tour after the elections was embarassing.
Iran wants influence. Such a large and populated country cannot be denied that. Everyone wants influence...
Countries try to gain influence and curb their enemies' influence, especially when that influence is a security threat (like Iran gaining influence by arming terrorist groups). Nothing illegitimate about trying to prevent Iran from gaining more power.
When the United States or Israel do something like what Iran is doing you criticize them for being imperialistic. When it is Iran, they're just legitimately trying to gain more influence.
Emm:
Who is the superpower in the region, Israel/US or Iran?
"like Iran gaining influence by arming terrorist groups"
Matter of opinion, that. Hamas flat out deny receiving support from Iran, they've called on the US to provide the evidence.
Hezbollah will be seen by most Lebanese (but not all) as a resistance group, especially after Leb I and Leb II. Can't blame them...
I also believe Iran would be willing to give up support for Hesbollah, in return for US pressure on Israel for a just I-P solution. A much more friendly Iranian stance toward Israel could result from it.
I believe that these are things the Obama administration are trying to manoeuvre towards, but it's early days.
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