Ya’alon cautions ex-officials on Iran chatter

In aftermath of Yadlin, Olmert comments, defense minister calls on former officials to "show more responsibility."

By YAAKOV LAPPIN
Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon 370 (photo credit: Ariel Hermoni, Defense Ministry spokesman)
Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon 370
(photo credit: Ariel Hermoni, Defense Ministry spokesman)
Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon visited the Hatzerim air base in southern Israel on Tuesday, accompanied by IAF Chief Maj.-Gen. Amir Eshel, and IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Benny Gantz.
During his visit, when asked about recent comments made about Iran by former senior Israeli officials, Ya’alon said, “People talk, expressing themselves freely. I’d be glad if people would show more responsibility, and if we didn’t need responses such as the one the prime minister had to provide.”
Last week, former Military Intelligence chief Maj.-Gen. (res.) Amos Yadlin said Iran had in effect already crossed Israel’s red line on its nuclear development.
During the recent Jerusalem Post Conference in New York, former prime minister Ehud Olmert said Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu had “exaggerated” the imminent nature of the Iranian threat, and that “perhaps someone helped them [the Iranians] to fail” in efforts to advance their nuclear program.
On Monday, Netanyahu said Iran had not yet crossed Israel’s red line in its nuclear project, but that it was systematically getting closer to it.
“The whole discussion on the Iranian issue is a sensitive discussion, and it would be preferable if it were held in the right places,” Ya’alon said on Tuesday.