International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei yesterday urged Israel to give up its nuclear arsenal, claiming it spurred a regional arms race. He called for discussions to be engaged between Israel and its regional neighbours in order to establish a de-nuclearised area and avoid further development of weapons of mass destruction. "My fear is that without such a dialogue, there will be continued incentive for the region's countries to develop weapons of mass destruction to match the Israeli arsenal," ElBaradei told the Haaretz daily. He deplored Israel's refusal to open the dialogue before its Arab neighbours recognise the Jewish state, arguing that signing the Non-Proliferation Treaty could engender the trust needed for progress. "I am not happy with the status quo, because I see a lot of frustration in the Middle East due to Israel's sitting on nuclear weapons or nuclear weapons capability, while others in the Middle East are committed to the NPT," he said. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied having nuclear arms, but Washington has accepted it as a nuclear power since 1969 and analysts say it has up to 200 sophisticated nuclear weapons. *One of Switzerland's top technical colleges is under investigation over the export of high-tech knowhow to a cornerstone of the Israeli arms industry, a spokeswoman for the Swiss federal prosecutor said in Geneva last night. The probe relates to a possible violation of Swiss law restricting the export of dual-use civilian and military goods, she indicated. A Swiss news magazine reported this week that the Federal Technical College in Lausanne had concluded a contract with the Israeli arms firm Rafael in July 2002 involving fine film technology. **PHOTO CAPTION*** International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Mohammed El Baradei. (AFP/Joe Klamar)