Israeli opposition leader says he won’t back military "adventures"

PanARMENIAN.Net - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's former top political partner put him on notice on Monday, July 23 he would not back Israeli military "adventures", comments that appeared to caution against possible action against Iran, Reuters reported.

Shaul Mofaz, now opposition leader, made the remarks less than a week after pulling his centrist Kadima party out of the governing coalition, where he served as vice premier for more than two months.

As a member of Netanyahu's security cabinet, Mofaz was privy to deliberations on Iran's nuclear program.

"Kadima will not embark on any operational adventures that will risk the future of our sons and daughters, and the future of Israel's citizens," Mofaz told a news conference that focused largely on a revolt inside Kadima by four lawmakers who wanted to rejoin the government.

In Israeli parlance the Hebrew term "operational" has a strictly military connotation. Mofaz is a former chief of Israel's armed forces and an ex-defense minister.

Israeli prime ministers have traditionally consulted with opposition leaders on major military operations. But in 1981 Menachem Begin ignored then opposition leader Shimon Peres's warnings against bombing Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor.

Mofaz's opposition increases the political risks for Netanyahu in his decision-making over Iran, especially if an operation went wrong and he faced any inquiry over it later.

Recent opinion polls show most Israelis would oppose any unilateral strike on Iran.

Mofaz's comments appeared to echo those of former Israeli security officials who have publicly spoken against any go-it-alone attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, with some saying such an assault could backfire by spurring Tehran to speed up uranium enrichment.