Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has accused Iran of doing everything it could to obtain nuclear weapons, further ratcheting up the pressure on its arch-foe.
"Iran is making every effort to arm itself with nuclear weapons, with ballistic means of delivery, and it is preparing an enormous terrorist network with Syria and Lebanon," he told parliament, opening debate on his plan to withdraw from Gaza.
Iran has denied trying to build an atom bomb and says its nuclear programme is just for peaceful purposes.
Mr Sharon, striving to blunt resistance to his plan from Israel's nationalist right, referred to Iran as he emphasised Israel faced various dangers and this was not time for disunity over his policies.
"We are powerful enough to defend this country and hit our enemy hard," he said amid heckling from rightist deputies.
Israel, believed to have the only nuclear arsenal in the Middle East, has recently increased pressure on Iran by saying it has obtained weapons that could target the Islamic Republic's underground uranium enrichment facilities.
Iran said last week it had test-fired a more accurate version of its Shahab-3 missile, the latest in a series of upgrades to the weapon thought capable of hitting Israel and US bases in the Gulf.
Iran does not recognise Israel's right to exist, but insists its missiles are for defensive purposes and would be used only to counter an Israeli or US attack on its nuclear facilities.
European Union diplomats are trying to strike a deal with Iran to encourage it to give up uranium enrichment to defuse a dispute over whether Tehran is seeking nuclear arms.
Washington wants to haul Iran before the UN Security Council in November for possible sanctions after a meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog.