(May 22, 2006)
|
PLEASE FIND ENCLOSED A MESSAGE FOR WIDE CIRCULATION FROM AKIVA ORR ([email protected]). ****************************************************************** The Israeli Committee For a Middle East Free from Atomic, Biological & Chemical Weapons P.O Box 16202 Tel Aviv, 61161, Israel, Tel/Fax +972-(0)3-5222869 Email: [email protected] ****************************************************************** May 18, 2006 To: The Honorable Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the United Nations Re: The Iranian threat to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Your Excellency, Iran's nuclear projects acquire an alarming significance with Iran's recent threat to withdraw its acceptance of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). The Middle-East is a volatile region. In the last fifty years the Middle-East had more wars than any other region in the world. If governments in this region acquire nuclear weapons the probability of a nuclear holocaust in the M-E rises sharply. A nuclear holocaust in the Middle-East will affect the entire world. Efforts to stop Iran's nuclear projects lack credibility as long as they allow other governments in this region to have such weapons. As is well known, in 1987 an Israeli court sentenced the Israeli citizen Mordechai Vanunu to 18 years imprisonment for informing the Sunday Times about Israel's nuclear weapons industry. The Israeli court declared Vanunu guilty of Treason, not of Libel. This amounts to an official admission that Israel has nuclear weapons. So far Iran denies that it intends to build nuclear weapons and has signed the NPT. All Israeli governments have refused to sign the NPT. Mr. Shimon Peres, Israel's deputy Prime Minister, has recently replied to Iranian threats against Israel by declaring that "Iran too can be destroyed". We suggest that you act so that both Israel -- and Iran -- obey the NPT and put all their nuclear plants under International control. Steps taken against Iran's nuclear projects that are not applied also to Israel's nuclear projects lack credibility and are bound to appear as biased and as hypocrisy. We call upon you to declare that the UN supports a Nuclear-Free Middle-East and will act to make all governments in this region sign the NPT. Only pressure on ALL governments in this region can prevent a nuclear holocaust. Yours sincerely, awaiting your reply, Gideon Spiro, Committee coordinator On behalf of the following members of the Committee: Akiva Orr Yael Lotan Dr. Yehuda Atai Ehud Ein-Gil Alon Marcus Giyora Neumann. Copies: Sunday Times, New-York Times, Washington Post, Le Monde |