Israel says it has delayed Iran nuclear bomb by 'at least two or three years'
Gideon Saar.
Photo:
ANP via AFP
Israel estimates its strikes on Iran have delayed Tehran's potential to develop a nuclear weapon by "at least two or three years", Israel's foreign minister said in an interview published Saturday.
Israel's offensive, which has hit hundreds of nuclear and military sites, killing top commanders and nuclear scientists, has produced "very significant" results, Foreign Minister Gideon Saar told German newspaper Bild.
"According to the assessment we hear, we already delayed for at least two or three years the possibility for them to have a nuclear bomb," said Saar.
"The fact that we took out those people who led and pushed the weaponisation of the nuclear program is extremely important," he told Bild.
"We already achieved a lot, but we will do whatever we can do. We will not stop until we will do everything that we can do there in order to remove this threat."
Iran, which has retaliated against the unprecedented offensive Israel launched on 13 June with drone and missile strikes, denies it is pursuing nuclear weapons.
Saar said the Israeli government had not "defined regime change" in the Islamic republic as "an objective in this war".
"At least until now, we didn't do that," he said.
- AFP
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