Benjamin Netanyahu to Release 'Important' Statement on Iran Nuclear Deal on Monday Evening

The Israeli Prime Minister's Office announced that Benjamin Netanyahu will issue a statement on Monday evening, April 29, regarding a 'very important event related to the nuclear agreement with Iran.' This statement is set to be broadcast simultaneously on radio and television channels and social media of the Prime Minister's Office at 8 PM Israel time, 9:30 PM Iran time. Mr. Netanyahu's office has not provided further details on this matter. According to Israeli media, due to the importance of preparing the statement related to Iran, he canceled his speech at the opening session of the Knesset's summer session, which he was scheduled to address on Monday evening. Prior to this, Israeli media reported that an emergency meeting of Israel's security cabinet lasted two hours at the Ministry of Defense, discussing the situation in light of the attacks on Sunday evening in Syria. At the same time, opposition parties in Israel announced that due to national unity in the current situation, they have withdrawn their no-confidence proposals against Mr. Netanyahu's government, which were to be presented to the Knesset at the start of the summer session. The White House announced that Donald Trump, the President of the United States, had a phone conversation with Benjamin Netanyahu regarding Iran on Sunday evening. Mike Pompeo, the new U.S. Secretary of State, also discussed Iran with the Israeli Prime Minister on Sunday evening and afterward stated that 'we are deeply concerned about the increased threat from Iran in the region against Israel.' The Israeli Prime Minister, alongside Mr. Pompeo, told reporters that 'the greatest threat to the world,' according to Israel and the U.S., is 'the marriage of radical Islam with nuclear weapons, specifically Iran's efforts to acquire nuclear weapons.' Israel considers Iran's nuclear program to be 'a vital danger' and views the nuclear agreement between global powers and Iran as 'catastrophic.' In recent days, the Israeli Prime Minister reiterated that if the JCPOA does not undergo fundamental changes, it would be better to cancel it. Mr. Netanyahu's 'important statement' regarding the JCPOA is set to be released just twelve days before the U.S. President's decision on this agreement is due. On Sunday evening, coinciding with the new U.S. Secretary of State's visit to Israel and his discussions with the Prime Minister, regional media and then the Syrian army reported missile attacks on military bases in the suburbs of Hama and Aleppo. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claims that the majority of the casualties among the 26 killed in the attacks on these bases were forces sent by Iran to Syria. Some regional media claimed the death toll could be as high as 40. However, Iranian media on Monday denied reports of Iranian casualties in Syria, citing 'military sources.' The Tasnim news agency quoted the 'commander of the Fatemiyoun Brigade' in Syria, denying the deaths of his forces or damage to their bases in Syria. Aladdin Boroujerdi, head of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament, met with Bashar al-Assad, the President of Syria, hours after the attack in Damascus. However, the official Syrian news agency did not mention any specific connection between this meeting and the Sunday night attacks. In response to Netanyahu's upcoming statement, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, tweeted, 'The boy who cannot stop shouting wolf has returned to his habit.' Zarif's reference is to the tale of 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf,' a familiar story in Iranian elementary education. Zarif also recalled a simple plan that Netanyahu presented in a speech several years ago at the UN General Assembly regarding the progress of Iran's nuclear program, adding that he has not learned from the 'shame' of that depiction. According to Zarif, one can only mislead a number of people a few times.