Israeli fighter jets ‘can reach anywhere in the Mideast,’ Netanyahu warns Iran

Netanyahu put the Islamic Republic on notice on Tuesday, referring explicitly to Israel’s air power just a day after Iran announced it’s breaking the 2015 nuclear deal.

By World Israel News Staff and AP

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a strong rebuke to Iran on Tuesday, standing in front of an F-35 stealth fighter during a tour of an air base.

Netanyahu declared that Iran “ought to remember that these planes can reach every place in the Middle East, including Iran and certainly Syria.”

The Israeli prime minister issued the comments just a day after Iran announced it began enriching uranium beyond the limit set by the 2015 nuclear agreement. In recent days, Iran also explicitly threatened to attack Israel.

Netanyahu has remained a vocal critic of the nuclear deal struck by world powers and Iran in 2015, and has called on Europe to impose fresh sanctions in response to Iran’s breach of it. Netanyahu has repeatedly vowed that Israel will never allow Iran to develop the capability to make a nuclear bomb.

On Tuesday, European parties to the 2015 nuclear deal, including Germany, Britain, and France, said they have “deep concern” regarding Iran’s decision to enrich uranium to a higher purity than allowed under the agreement, which stakeholders such as Israel have warned is a step toward developing a nuclear arsenal. The Europeans called for an urgent meeting of all involved in the accord.

Besides enriching uranium past the allowed 3.67% to 4.5%, the U.N. nuclear agency also confirmed Iran has surpassed the stockpile limit on low-enriched uranium.

The Europeans say Iran has said it wants to remain in the JCPOA and “must act accordingly by reversing these activities and returning to full JCPOA compliance without delay.”

They say a meeting of the JCPOA commission, which also includes Russia and China, “should be convened urgently,” but didn’t specify when.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani agreed in a weekend conversation to set a July 15 deadline to solve the current impasse, and ultimately try to save the 2015 nuclear accord that the U.S. pulled out of last year.

Macron spoke with President Donald Trump on Monday — the day Iran enriched uranium beyond the accord’s limit and broke the limit on stockpiles.