The world should put pressure on Israel to forsake nuclear weapons, Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi said Saturday in Damascus. "International pressure should be applied to Israel to eradicate its weapons of mass destruction, as this would be in the interest of the whole region," Kharrazi said.

He was speaking to reporters after holding talks with President Bashar Assad. Syria has proposed that the UN Security Council should declare the Middle East a zone free of nuclear weapons. The Security Council is divided on the question of taking up Syria's proposal.

The feeling in Jerusalem is that despite what is sure to be pressure from the Arab countries to focus world attention on Israel's nuclear program, it is unlikely to gain much traction because "the US won't sign on."

However, just as the Arabs succeeded in throwing the fence issue to the International Court of Justice in the Hague, Israel must prepare itself diplomatically to "fend off coordinated offensive to push Israel into the corner" on this matter, one source said...