Israel Suggests that Washington Ramp Up Sanctions on Iran to Level Imposed on Russia

Bennett and Blinken during a press conference in Jerusalem on Sunday, March 27, 2022. (Reuters)
Bennett and Blinken during a press conference in Jerusalem on Sunday, March 27, 2022. (Reuters)
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Israel Suggests that Washington Ramp Up Sanctions on Iran to Level Imposed on Russia

Bennett and Blinken during a press conference in Jerusalem on Sunday, March 27, 2022. (Reuters)
Bennett and Blinken during a press conference in Jerusalem on Sunday, March 27, 2022. (Reuters)

Israel has suggested to US President Joe Biden’s administration an alternative to the nuclear deal with Iran, sources in the US and Tel Aviv revealed on Thursday.

During a press conference on Sunday with Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken asked how Tel Aviv would stop Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, when at its current enrichment pace, it would be able to do so within weeks.

Bennett said Iran can be deterred from enriching uranium to the military level of 90% if it knows the United States and European countries will ramp up sanctions to the level they’ve been imposed on Russia after invading Ukraine.

The PM also told Blinken that the nuclear deal will only be “a band-aid” solution for just a few years. At the same time, it will give Iran billions of dollars that it would use for its regional malign activities and to arm its proxies, a senior State Department official and an Israeli senior official said.

“It is us here in the region that will have to deal with that afterward,” Bennett warned, according to the officials.

He also protested the notion of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) being delisted as a terrorist group.

“The idea that this organization will be removed from the Foreign Terrorist Organizations blacklist is very disturbing and not just to us,” he said. “We are still hoping and working toward preventing this from happening.”

Blinken, for his part, tried to reassure Israel by affirming that “there is no daylight” between the US and Israel on the efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, as well as countering its threats to the region.

He added that the US will maintain that stance regardless of whether a new Iran nuclear deal is reached.

“Deal or no deal, we will continue to work together and with other partners to counter Iran’s destabilizing behavior in the region,” he stressed.



Blast at Los Angeles Sheriff's Facility Leaves 3 Dead

A Los Angeles County sheriff's officer stands watch as a police vehicle passes by, while officers block the road to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Biscailuz Center Academy Training facility,in East Los Angeles, California, US July 18, 2025. REUTERS/ Mike Blake
A Los Angeles County sheriff's officer stands watch as a police vehicle passes by, while officers block the road to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Biscailuz Center Academy Training facility,in East Los Angeles, California, US July 18, 2025. REUTERS/ Mike Blake
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Blast at Los Angeles Sheriff's Facility Leaves 3 Dead

A Los Angeles County sheriff's officer stands watch as a police vehicle passes by, while officers block the road to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Biscailuz Center Academy Training facility,in East Los Angeles, California, US July 18, 2025. REUTERS/ Mike Blake
A Los Angeles County sheriff's officer stands watch as a police vehicle passes by, while officers block the road to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Biscailuz Center Academy Training facility,in East Los Angeles, California, US July 18, 2025. REUTERS/ Mike Blake

An explosion at a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department training facility has killed three deputies, local media reported on Friday, though officials have yet to confirm any deaths.

A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department said an explosion occurred at the Biscailuz Center Academy Training in East Los Angeles. The spokesperson said the cause was under investigation and that they were not yet ready to confirm any deaths or injuries, Reuters reported.

The Los Angeles Times newspaper, citing unnamed law enforcement sources, reported that three deputies were killed in the blast, which took place when a bomb squad moved some explosives.

Hilda Solis, who serves on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, said in a written statement that "my heart goes out to the families, friends, and colleagues of the three individuals who lost their lives in what appears to have been a devastating explosion."

US Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote on social media that she had spoken with Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna along with US Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli "about what appears to be a horrific incident that killed at least three at a law enforcement training facility in Los Angeles."

Bondi said that federal agents were at the scene and working to learn more.