In October of 2006 he reiterated his position, saying: “(Israel) cannot remain indifferent to Iran, it has a combination of radical ideology with an intense desire to obtain nuclear weapons and the desire to destroy Israel.”

Six year later and Halutz now sports a more moderate position: “I don’t think there’s room for any doomsday scenarios or comparisons with the Holocaust. I also don’t think Israel should be the one to lead any operation against Iran.”

An existential threat, he explained “is defined as the other side’s ability to obliterate us off the face of the earth. That doesn’t apply nor do I think it will.