- Feinstein accuses Western countries of complicity through silence and ‘mealy-mouthed words that mean nothing’
- ‘Our governments should stop Israel from behaving like it is at the moment, and ensure that Netanyahu and his generals are sent to The Hague,’ says Feinstein
LONDON
Israeli airstrikes on Iranian nuclear and military facilities could trigger a nuclear disaster with effects lasting generations, prominent activist Andrew Feinstein has warned.
“It’s absolutely terrifying,” said Feinstein, a Jewish South African who lost family in the Holocaust, worked under Nelson Mandela, and later moved to the UK, where he has become one of the most prominent critics of military corruption and the global arms trade.
As Israel continues its strikes on Iranian nuclear and military infrastructure and personnel, Feinstein said the attacks risk spreading nuclear waste and radioactive material across a wide area.
“That will have a devastating impact on people in those areas for generations and generations to come,” he told Anadolu.
Feinstein emphasized the danger being posed to all of humanity by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s personal political motivations.
“He needs perpetual war to stay in political power and to stay out of jail on innumerable corruption charges,” Feinstein said.
The UN nuclear watchdog reported that the smallest of Iran’s three enrichment plants – a pilot plant made above-ground at the Natanz nuclear complex – was destroyed in recent strikes, but as of Monday morning, it had not detected elevated radiation levels.
“Nuclear facilities must never be attacked, regardless of the context or circumstances, as it could harm both people and the environment,” Rafael Grossi, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, warned last Friday.
Double standards on nuclear development
Feinstein also criticized the irony of Israel – a country that is widely believed to have nuclear weapons but does not acknowledge it – attacking another nation over its nuclear ambitions.
“The reality is that Iran doesn’t have the nuclear capability that Israel has. It could potentially, in years to come, but it doesn’t have it," he said.
He recalled how Israel and apartheid South Africa collaborated on their own clandestine nuclear programs.
“Apartheid South Africa and apartheid Israel helped each other to become nuclear powers,” he said, referring to a secret nuclear cooperation agreement signed between the two nations in 1975, later revealed in declassified documents.
“South Africa gave up its nuclear weapons in 1994 when we became a democracy,” he added.
‘Who are the real aggressors here?’
Feinstein accused Western governments of “doing absolutely nothing” in the face of what he called an escalating threat. That, he said, is “the most terrifying thing.”
“Our governments should stop Israel from behaving like it is at the moment, and should ensure that Netanyahu and his generals are sent to The Hague to face legal process for a genocide that they have perpetrated,” he said.
Instead, he continued, Western leaders offer little more than “mealy-mouthed words that mean nothing,” or worse, silence.
“It’s appalling,” he added. “It shows the total lack of political leadership we have in so-called Western countries today.”
Feinstein said the West’s stance on Israel’s attacks on Iran reflects a pattern.
“Western countries always have to have an enemy,” he said, adding that the US “has invaded more countries than all other countries on the planet put together.”
“So, who are the real aggressors here? The people of Iran do not deserve to be attacked by the criminal, racist state of Israel, with the support of our government,” he said.
He added that Western countries seeking regime change in Iran should learn from their historic mistakes.
“Once before, Britain overthrew a democratically elected government in Iran,” he said, referring to the 1953 coup against then-Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh. “It is one of the main reasons for the political instability in the Middle East today.”
Feinstein ended with a call for reflection and accountability.
“Let us seek peace in the Middle East, not war and conflict from which our arms companies, our politicians, and our political parties profit,” he said.
