The World - News from June 23, 1987

Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi said the Arab world “must possess” nuclear weapons in its quest for development and to “liberate Palestine,” Libyan television reported. Kadafi told university students that nuclear bombs are defensive weapons essential to Arabs and should be used if the Arab world’s “existence and independence” are threatened. Kadafi accused the West of being hypocritical about nuclear weapons, saying, “Daily they make atom bombs. Why not us?” Intelligence sources in recent years have said that Kadafi has made unsuccessful attempts to gain nuclear technology.