UNITED NATIONS _ Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had little to say about prospects for peace with the Palestinians _ but plenty to say about the Iran nuclear accord, which he vehemently opposes.
Netanyahu, addressing the General Assembly on its opening day Tuesday, called Iran's nuclear ambitions a "dark shadow" and said its rulers "vow to destroy my country." That echoed rhetoric employed a short time earlier by President Donald Trump, who called Iran's government a "reckless regime" and suggested the landmark 2015 accord would be revisited.
Calling yet again for the scrapping of the pact between Iran and six world powers, Netanyahu said the nuclear deal "doesn't block Iran's path to the bomb, but actually paves it."
"Change it, or cancel it. Fix it, or nix it," the Israeli leader challenged. "Nixing the deal means restoring massive pressure on Iran, including crippling sanctions, until Iran fully dismantles its nuclear weapons capability."
After discussing the Iranian nuclear accord at length, Netanyahu did refer briefly to Israel's hopes for "peace with all our Arab neighbors, including the Palestinians."
He said he considered Trump an ally in that effort, adding: "Together we can seize the opportunities for peace, and together we can confront the great dangers of Iran."
Netanyahu has made clear he does not consider the General Assembly a forum friendly to Israel, and he was critical of actions including last December's Security Council resolution condemning Jewish settlement-building.
Immediately before the Israeli leader spoke, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the Palestinian question the "gaping wound of the world" and called for a halt to settlement activity.
