... whilest trying to set the scene to justify their own future plans

www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17017176

Israel has blamed Iran for three explosions in Thailand after accusing the country of bomb attacks on its diplomats in India and Georgia.

Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said the bomb attacks in Bangkok prove "once again that Iran and its proxies continue to perpetrate terror".

from - news.sky.com/home/world-news/article/16169602

Where is the evidence ?

===

Martin van Creveld, a military historian, says that Israel exaggerates the dangers posed by the Persian state.

"We are very self-centred; we are taught from day one that the whole world is against us that everybody hates us for no good reason and we are the righteous victims. It's a position that Israelis love and it's very useful to us," he says.

Mr van Creveld speaks from a small office in his home outside Jerusalem. Some of the 20 books he has written sit on the top shelf next to his computer. He appears to enjoy opposing mainstream Israeli opinion.

"Iran is a dangerous country but not to us," he says, "Israel is far away. Israel has got what it takes to deter Iran if necessary."

So, what happens in the Middle East if Iran gains a nuclear capability?

"Nothing happens. Nothing happens. Nothing happens," he says.

The historian believes that a nuclear Iran would help to keep the peace in the Middle East - just as nuclear weapons kept the peace between the US and the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

from - www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-16655995

2 voices of common sense, in fact !!!

from BBC - www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-17082433

But ex-UK diplomat Sir Richard Dalton said Iran was not "rushing towards a nuclear weapon".

Sir Richard, a former UK ambassador to Iran, said: "There are many signs, as reported by the International Atomic Energy Agency, that some research and development relevant to the development of nuclear weapons may still be going on.

"But it is wrong to say that Iran is rushing towards having a nuclear weapon.

"Indeed, the analysis published to the United States Congress by the top intelligence assessors there indicates that Iran has not taken a decision to have a nuclear weapon

===

Shashank Joshi, of defence think tank the Royal United Services Institute, told the BBC the West's fears could be unfounded.

"If we could live with nuclear weapons in the hands of totalitarian, genocidal states like Stalin's Russia or Mao's China, Iran in contrast - whatever its repulsive internal policies and adventurism abroad - is far more rational," he said.

Mr Joshi said Iran may not be actively pursuing the creation of nuclear weapons but leaving the option open