IDF Chief: Attacking Iran to Stop its Nuclear Program is ‘At the Center’ of Israel’s Plans

JERUSALEM, Israel – Israel’s military chief says the Jewish state has a “moral imperative” to prepare a military response to Iran’s nuclear program, and that an attack on the Islamic republic is “at the center” of Israel’s plans.

"Preparing the home front for war has been an important issue since the inception of the state, but it has become increasingly important over the years," IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi said Sunday during a speech at a military ceremony. "This is a task that must be accelerated in the coming years, especially in view of the possibility that we will be required to act against a nuclear threat, and it should be part of the intensive preparations we are advancing for the moment of truth.”

Kochavi said “preparing a military option against the Iranian nuclear program is a moral imperative and a national security order.” He revealed that such plans are “at the center” of the IDF’s preparations, which include “a variety of operational plans, the allocation of resources, the acquisition of appropriate weapons, intelligence and training.”

American officials believe Iran is close to amassing enough material to begin developing a nuclear weapon. While Iran has insisted its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, a senior Iranian official boasted on Sunday that his country is capable of manufacturing a nuclear bomb.  

“It is no secret that we have the technical capabilities to manufacture a nuclear bomb, but we have no decision to do so,” Kamal Kharazi, the head of Iran’s Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, told Al Jazeera hours before Kochavi’s speech.

“In a few days, we were able to enrich uranium up to 60 percent, and we can easily produce 90% enriched uranium,” he said.

While the United States and Israel want to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, they disagree over how exactly to do that. President Joe Biden said during an interview with Israeli media last week that unleashing America’s military might against Iran is a “last resort,” and that he is prioritizing diplomacy. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid says diplomacy won’t stop Iran’s nuclear program.

Despite their differences, Biden and Lapid signed a declaration in which Washington vowed to use “all elements in its national power” to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

The Biden administration has made reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal a top priority. However, talks to restore the accord are at a dead end, reportedly over Biden’s refusal to remove Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps from a US terror list.

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The accord, signed between Germany, China, Britain, France, Iran, Russia and the United States, lifted most international sanctions on Tehran in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program. Critics argue the original deal was poorly negotiated and gave Iran a path to a nuclear weapon by gradually lifting restrictions on its nuclear program. Proponents argue that the deal’s restrictions were actually working to slow Iran’s nuclear capabilities, and that the Trump administration’s decision to unilaterally leave the accord in 2018 gave Iran the green light to also abandon its obligations to the deal.

Iran has been increasingly violating the deal’s restrictions on uranium enrichment and is closer than ever to a nuclear weapon.  Israel opposes the Iran nuclear deal and has threatened to strike Iran alone if it believes there is an existential threat to the Jewish state.