Iran's true face exposed, must stop bluffing: Israel

Israel has asked Iran to "stop bluffing" hours after the Jewish state's defence forces claimed to have seized an Iranian ship carrying advanced weapons intended for Palestinian terror groups in Gaza Strip.

The ship destined for Gaza was seized on March 4.

Lauding the navy's action as a "brilliant military operation and an extremely important act, "Israel's President Shimon Peres said it "exposes the true face of Iran".

"Iran must stop bluffing. This operation exposes the true face of Iran which says one thing but does the opposite. They put on an innocent face and send the most dangerous missiles to a terror organisation that kills innocents, in violation of international law," Peres said.

"Iran must make up its mind either to tell the truth and respect international law or admit that it is all camouflage and we cannot trust their policy or declaration," he said hinting at the dialogue going on between Tehran and the P5+1 nations consisting of the five permanent members of the security council and Germany.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is said to have authorised the military action, reiterated his position that Iran "cannot posses nuclear weapons".

"At a time when it is talking to the major powers, Iran smiles and says all sorts of nice things. The same Iran is sending deadly weapons to terrorist organisations and is doing so via a ramified network of secret operations in order to send rockets, missiles and other deadly weapons that will be used to harm innocent citizens," Netanyahu said.

"This is the true Iran and this state cannot possess nuclear weapons. We will continue to whatever is necessary in order to defend Israel's citizens," he emphasised.

Describing Iran's nuclear programme as an existential threat, Israel has often said it will keep all options open on the table to foil the Islamic Republic's nuclear ambitions, in a veiled threat to use military action if required.

Earlier, Israel Defence Forces yesterday claimed to have seized an Iranian ship carrying sophisticated weapons, including advanced rockets capable of hitting distances up to 200 Kms, destined for Gaza.

Meanwhile, Israel's close ally, the United States, has said it helped Jerusalem track the Gaza-bound arms shipment and was prepared to take action if needed.

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said that the US military was prepared to get involved in the seizure of the vessel, which was loaded with Iranian missiles, but added that Israel "ultimately chose to take the lead."

She said that the White House had directed the Defence Department to monitor the vessel, which was headed for the Gaza Strip via Sudan, and take "unilateral steps if necessary."

The fact that the White House directed the Pentagon to get involved showed "strong concern" by the United States over Iran's attempts to destabilise the region with arms shipments, Psaki asserted.