B’nai B’rith International lobbies Congress to reject Iran nuclear deal
B’nai B’rith International became the latest Jewish organization to come out against the Obama administration’s rapprochement with the Islamic Republic of Iran on Sunday, issuing a lengthy statement calling on Congress to reject the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action intended to curtail Tehran’s nuclear program.
Congress is reviewing the deal ahead of a vote to approve or disapprove the agreement in September.
The Jewish organization has been largely silent on the deal since it was signed in Vienna last month, although it did note at the time that it was “impossible to look at Iran’s track record and trust the regime to adhere to the terms of this pact.”
While thanking the White House for providing opportunities to hear the administration’s side, B’nai B’rith ultimately decided to oppose the deal because its endorsement would require “an unprecedented suspension of disbelief” that Iran’s nuclear aims were peaceful.
“Given its decades of dissembling, it is infeasible to conclude that Tehran will honor its obligations under this agreement,” the group asserted.
According to B’nai B’rith president Allan J. Jacobs, “We listened, we read, we analyzed and we have concluded that we can – not support this deal with Iran. We have doubts about elevating the international status of Iran, which has done nothing to prove it will keep its word.”