Kerry: Before deal, Israel and Arabs pushed US to bomb Iran

Kerry claims that several Middle Eastern countries, including Israel, called on the US to bomb Iran prior to the signing of the nuclear deal.  

By: AP and World Israel News Staff

Former Secretary of State John Kerry said both Israel and Egypt were pushing the US to “bomb Iran” before the 2015 nuclear deal was struck.

“Kings and foreign presidents” told the US that bombing was the only language Iran would understand, Kerry told a Washington forum, defending the agreement he had formulated between Iran and the P5+1 countries. He was apparently referring to the Saudis when talking about “kings.”

Kerry said that was “a trap” in many ways because the same countries that demanded action would have publicly criticized the US if it bombed Iran.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was “genuinely agitating toward action,” he added.

Kerry said he doesn’t know whether Iran will resume pursuing a nuclear weapon in 10 to 15 years after restrictions in the deal are lifted, but he claimed it was the best deal the US could get.

Israel has long asserted that the nuclear agreement does not block Iran’s path to a nuclear bomb, but only postpones its development. Netanyahu has called on the US and other countries to alter the deal to ensure that it significantly hinders Iran’s ability to develop nuclear weapons.