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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will urge world leaders to keep up the pressure on Iran over its nuclear program even as they confront the threat of Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria.

Netanyahu, addressing the United Nations General Assembly today, will expand on his Sept. 22 remarks mocking esteemed commentators in the West who say the major powers need to go easy on Irans nuclear program so that Iran will fight Islamic State, according to aides familiar with his speech. They asked not to be identified because it hasnt been delivered.

Two years ago, Netanyahu pulled out a cartoon bomb at the same forum to argue time was running out to stop Iran from building a nuclear bomb. With efforts to crush Islamic State overshadowing the General Assembly session, his message may be tougher to sell this time.

Netanyahu has a big problem, because the main issue in this UN General Assembly is the Islamic State, and hes coming with Iran, which people will say is not as important, said Eytan Gilboa, professor of political science at Bar-Ilan University outside Tel Aviv. As in previous General Assemblies, Netanyahu may have a message, but no audience.

Netanyahus diplomatic efforts at the UN and a White House visit on Oct. 1 will also be clouded by new frictions with the Palestinians. Over the weekend, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas asked the UN to set a timetable for establishing a Palestinian state and accused Israel of perpetrating a war of genocide in Gaza -- a charge Netanyahu denounced as slander and lies.

World powers are trying to reach a nuclear deal with Iran as a U.S.-led military coalition strikes Islamic State, an al-Qaeda splinter that has seized parts of Iraq and Syria and gained notoriety for beheadings and crucifixions. Although Iran isnt part of that alliance, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has said it has a role to play in defeating Islamic State.

Kerry will have a private meeting with Netanyahu in New York this evening, said State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki.

Netanyahu says a nuclear-armed Iran would be a threat to Israels survival and dismisses the Iranian governments claims that its atomic program is peaceful. Having brandished the threat of a possible military strike, he has urged that any nuclear deal between Iran and world powers force Iran to end its uranium enrichment and other activities that could be used in bomb making.

Iran says its nuclear work is designed for energy and medical purposes and has rejected those conditions. On Sept. 25, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told the General Assembly his country is committed to continue our peaceful nuclear program, including enrichment, and to enjoy our full nuclear rights on Iranian soil.

After addressing the UN, Netanyahu will make a brief trip to Washington to meet with President Barack Obama. The two men have had tense relations and at times Netanyahu has turned to allies in Congress seeking support for Israeli government policies on Iran and other issues.

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Netanyahu to Push Iran as Worse Threat Than Islamic State