Iran has long been involved in the sponsoring and support of worldwide terror groups and has been officially implicated for its involvement in terrorist activities in several Western states. It provides aid in the form of weapons, training, and funding to Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups, Hizbullah in Lebanon, Iraq-based militants, and Taliban fighters in Afghanistan.
Iran's behavior over the past several years suggests that it is actively pursuing a nuclear weapons program. While denying these allegations, Iran's behavior has led to its being sanctioned by various international bodies, including the IAEA and the U.N Security Council.
In the past decade, Iran has pursued all stages of developing nuclear weapons, including mining uranium, converting uranium to uranium hexafluoride, enriching uranium hexafluoride to obtain high-grade fissile material necessary for military use, and developing an implosion system needed for the detonation of nuclear devices. All this despite Iran's commitment to and ratification of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. In addition, Iran has developed weapons systems - primarily medium- and long-range ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear payloads to countries in the Middle East, Europe and soon North America.
In addition, Iran continues to violate and disregard the human rights of its own citizens, and represses freedom of the press, freedom of association, freedom of religion, equality, and children's rights.
Iran publically denies the Holocaust, and is the only country that openly calls for the annihilation of another state - the State of Israel.
President Ahmadinejad actively endorses chaos, so as to hasten the re-emergence of the Hidden Imam and spread true Islamic rule worldwide. He believes that the Hidden Imam will return only following an apocalyptic war against Israel and the West.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (17 Feb 2010):
"We are threatened by an extremist form of Islam, headed by Tehran, which sends out its tentacles in the form of Hamas and Hizbullah and other terrorist organizations, which undermine the very existence of the State of Israel and speak openly about their desire to destroy it. This is not just a threat against Israel, but against the entire world...
There are tens of millions of people in Iran, the vast majority, aspiring to one thing - freedom from this brutal tyranny.
The character of this regime was exposed and their secret nuclear program was exposed. Now the question is what the international community will do in the face of this challenge. If sanctions include preventing the export of gasoline and, equally important, the importation of petroleum products, Iran's economy will be stopped. I hope the international community will rise to the occasion. I hope they understand the magnitude of this moment, this historic moment in time when the responsible countries of the world, which already understand the magnitude of the threat and the short period of time we have left, will do what is necessary."