Israel Matzav

Syria says it was nuclear

Arutz Sheva reports that a Syrian diplomat at the United Nations admits that Israel destroyed a nuclear facility in Syria on September 6.

A Syrian official has now admitted that the Israeli operation on September 6 destroyed a nuclear facility.

A Syrian representative said Tuesday at the United Nations that reports that the target was a nuclear device were accurate. Syrian officials, including President Bashar Assad had previously claimed that Israel attacked an abandoned army base or an agricultural facility.

During a meeting of the UN Disarmament Commission, the Syrian representative acknowledged that the target had been the nuclear facility. Israeli Foreign Ministry officials were also attending. He accused Israel of aggression for targeting the facility.

Now THAT's chutzpa!

Update 2:45 PM

Syria is now denying this story.

Syria denied on Wednesday reports that its representatives to the United Nations said that a nuclear facility was hit last month by Israeli warplanes, and added that "such facilities do not exist in Syria," state-run news agency said.

The Syrian Arab News Agency, SANA, quoting a foreign ministry source, said that Syria had made it clear in the past that there are no such facilities in Syria.

On Tuesday, a UN press release sent after a meeting of the First Committee, Disarmament and International Security, in New York quoted Syria's UN ambassador, Bashar al-Jaafari, as saying that a nuclear facility was hit.

"Moreover, Israel was the fourth largest exporter of weapons of mass destruction and a violator of other nations' airspace, and it had taken action against nuclear facilities, including the 6 July attack in Syria," the release quoted al-Jaafari as saying. The date given by the release was wrong since the raid occurred two months later.

...

The Syrian news agency on Wednesday said the press release misquoted the Syrian diplomat.

"A Foreign Ministry official source denies reports by some media organizations that the Syrian ambassador in New York, Bashar al-Jaafari, said Israel carried a raid on a nuclear facility," SANA said.

"Such facilities do not exist in Syria and this is what Syria has already explicitly clarified," SANA said.

A transcript of the meeting in New York was not immediately available.

The press release is here.

Al-Jaafri will be seeking asylum in the US in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1....

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 2:27 PM