Israeli leader assails aim of Iran-nuclear talks; Obama: No 'viable alternatives'.

Byline: Aron Heller and Deb Riechmann

WASHINGTON -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Congress on Tuesday that an emerging agreement between Iran and the United States would all but guarantee that Tehran gets nuclear weapons and would be a very bad deal, drawing an extraordinarily blunt rebuttal from President Barack Obama.

In an appearance that has stirred political controversy in two countries, Netanyahu said ''Iran has proven time and again that it cannot be trusted,'' no matter what it says about permitting verification of the terms of any accord designed to prevent it from getting a nuclear bomb.

''The greatest danger facing our world is the marriage of militant Islam with nuclear weapons,'' he said in remarks before a packed House chamber that drew loud applause from Republicans and a more restrained reaction from Democrats.

Obama saw it differently, and said so from the White House. He said that the Israeli leader offered no ''viable alternatives'' to the nuclear negotiations with Iran and that the prospect of an agreement had already resulted in a freeze and rolling back of Iran's program.

Netanyahu spoke in English shortly after Secretary of State John Kerry met for more than two hours in Switzerland with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in hopes of completing an international framework agreement later this month to curb Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

The Israeli leader's appeal also came two weeks before tight elections in which he is seeking a new term -- and after the invitation to address Congress extended by House Speaker John Boehner, a Republican, triggered a political furor in the United States. More than four dozen House and Senate Democrats said in advance they would not attend the event, a highly unusual move given historically close ties between the two allies.

Many of Netanyahu's comments were greeted by loud applause from U.S. lawmakers, but not everyone was persuaded by his rhetoric.

House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi of California conspicuously refrained from applauding on several occasions, and when the Israeli leader called for holding out for a better deal with Iran, she held her hands wide and shook her head in disagreement.

Later, she issued a statement saying that she was ''near tears throughout the prime minister's speech -- saddened by the insult to the intelligence of the United States'' as part of the international coalition in talks with Tehran.

The White House expressed its...