Morsi condemns Israel war rhetoric against Iran, refusal to join NPT

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has warned Israel over its saber-rattling against Iran and Tel Aviv’s obstructionism against the realization of a nuclear-free Middle East.

The Middle East "no longer tolerates" any country's refusal to join the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), "especially if this is coupled with irresponsible policies or arbitrary threats," Morsi said in his address at the 67th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Wednesday.

The Egyptian leader was making reference to Israel’s policy of ambiguity about its military nuclear activities, which has helped it procure the Mideast’s only nuclear arsenal.

Israel has recently stepped up its threats to strike Iran’s nuclear energy facilities, while the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute believes Tel Aviv possesses 300 to 400 nuclear warheads, 80 of which remain in high operational alert, that is, they are ready to fire.

Iran is a committed signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), thus it has the right to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.

Morsi said the concept of a preemptive strike against a country must be confronted.

"The acceptance by the international community of the principle of pre-emptiveness or the attempt to legitimize it is in itself a serious matter and must be firmly confronted to avoid the prevalence of the law of the jungle," he stated.

The Egyptian president also referred to the continued occupation of Palestinian territories, and highlighted the Palestinian cause as “the first issue which the world must exert all its efforts in resolving, on the basis of justice and dignity.”

Morsi criticized Israel’s refusal to abide by UN resolutions and condemned its continued settlement expansions on occupied Palestinian land as “disgraceful.”

"It is shameful that the free world accepts, regardless of the justifications provided, that a member of the international community continues to deny the rights of a nation that has been longing for decades for independence," he said.