At U.N., Netanyahu denounces Iranian terrorism

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 29 (UPI) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking Monday at the United Nations General Assembly, refuted Iranian claims that it does not practice terrorism.

In denouncing Iranian claims that it does not engage in terrorism, Netanyahu invoked the name of recently retired baseball star Derek Jeter.

"To say Iran doesn't practice terrorism, is like saying Derek Jeter never played shortstop for the New York Yankees." He added, "This bemoaning by the Iranian president of the spread of terrorism has got to be one of history's greatest displays of double talk."

His remarks came after Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas has no plans to seek a peace with Israel, calling Abbas' U.N. speech "a message of hatred and incitement."

The Middle East is in chaos," Netanyahu said.

"States are disintegrating. And militant Islamists are filling the void. Israel cannot have territories from which it withdraws, taken over by Islamic militants yet again as happened in Gaza and Lebanon. That would place the likes of ISIS within mortar range -- a few miles of 80 percent of our population. Now think about that: the distance between the 1967 lines (a reference to borders drawn in 1967) and the suburbs of Tel Aviv is like the distance between the UN building here and Times Square."