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Rainbow Warrior in Tel Aviv: Greenpeace calls for a Nuclear Free Middle East
On a beach new Tel Aviv, Greenpeace activists call for Israel to wake up to the nuclear threat. Greenpeace is demanding more transparency on the country's nuclear facilities, and concrete steps towards establishing a nuclear-free Middle East. The environmental organization is on a three-month tour of the Middle East to lobby for nuclear disarmament and to promote non-nuclear energy sources.
Enlarge ImageAt a press conference on the beach with the Rainbow Warrior in the background, Greenpeace released a briefing paper highlighting the dangers posed to the populations of Iran, Israel and Turkey by nuclear installations.In front of the Rainbow Warrior a Zeppelin flew with a banner calling for a Nuclear free Middle East and, in Hebrew, Nuclear is dangerous for us all.
"Despite Israel's policy of nuclear ambiguity, international reports maintain that this country has developed nuclear facilities and one of them, the Nahal Sorek science reactor, is only 30 Kilometers from Tel Aviv," said Yonatan Leibowitz, Greenpeace Mediterranean Communications Director. "Israelis have the right to know where these facilities are and the right to be informed about the serious risks to health and the environment posed by these installations. The pursuit of a policy of ambiguity about the possible existence of a nuclear program in Israel only serves to destabilize the region. What is needed is a policy of honesty and transparency - one that will pave the way to a Nuclear Free Middle-East."
Recent Greenpeace reports pointed to the energy options for countries throughout the region including Iran, which could meet its energy needs without recourse to nuclear power. Through a combination of modern energy efficiency technologies and renewable energy sources Countries in the region could transform the energy sector in the Middle East to make it cleaner, safer, and more secure. At the same time, countries can reduce consumption of oil and gas.
"Nuclear power and nuclear weapons pose a serious threat to the safety and security of the entire region," said Paul Horsman, Peaceful Energy Coordinator for Greenpeace. "Throughout this tour Greenpeace has been calling on all countries to join the discussion for a Nuclear Free Middle-East and today in Tel Aviv we call on Israel to do the same. Nuclear technology is not the solution to either national security or energy needs."
The tour continues to Beirut, Lebanon, and ends in Istanbul, Turkey, mid-April.
