Netanyahu warns pending nuclear deal ‘paves Iran’s path to the bomb’

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used a controversial speech before the U.S. Congress to appeal to President Obama to pull back on nuclear talks with Iran, warning the “bad deal” in the works “paves Iran’s path to the bomb” and could lead to a “potential nuclear nightmare.”

The Israeli leader made his impassioned case Tuesday in a highly anticipated address in Washington. He claimed the potential deal would make two major concessions which would threaten the security of Israel and the region by retaining Iran’s ability to start up a nuclear weapons program.

“This is a bad deal. It’s a very bad deal. We’re better off without it,” Netanyahu said.

The Israeli leader spoke as part of a high-profile push to make his case against the pending deal.

He said the agreement in the works makes two major concessions. First, it would leave in place a “vast nuclear infrastructure,” since it wouldn’t require nuclear facilities to be destroyed — some centrifuges would be allowed to keep running, while others would merely be disconnected, he said.

Second, Netanyahu said the restrictions would “automatically expire” in about a decade.

“It’s the blink of an eye in the life of a nation,” Netanyahu said.

The deal, he said, “doesn’t block Iran’s path to the bomb. It paves Iran’s path to the bomb.” He reminded the audience of Iran’s deep history of funding terror and threatening Israel.

Countering the argument that the alternative to this deal is war, Netanyahu argued that the alternative is actually a “much better deal” — and suggested the U.S. has the leverage to achieve that.

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