Region | Iran
Israel denies plan to attack Iran
Israel on Saturday denied a report that it has asked the United States for permission to fly its bombers over Iraq to attack Iran's nuclear plants.
- Agencies
- Published: 00:00 February 24, 2007
Occupied Jerusalem: Israel on Saturday denied a report that it has asked the United States for permission to fly its bombers over Iraq to attack Iran's nuclear plants.
Britain's The Daily Telegraph quoted an unnamed Israeli official as saying that negotiations were taking place with the US-led coalition in Iraq.
"One of the last issues we have to sort out is how we actually get to the targets in Iran. The only way to do this is to fly through US-controlled airspace in Iraq," the Israeli official told the newspaper, adding that the effort is "unprecedented'' in Israel's history.
Deputy Defence Miniter Ephraim Sneh denied the report. "There has never been such a request, it is obvious," he told public radio.
He said it was the machination of "international sources who wish to dodge dealing directly with Iran and invent reports that we allegedly want to attack Iraq in order to relieve themselves from the responsibility."
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had called for Israel to be wiped off the map. Iran's nuclear aims and increasing influence over the Middle East have also stirred unease in the region and the West.
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