Rice talks tough on Iran, slams Egypt

      US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice delivered a stern warning to Iran and chastised Egypt on the eve of her visit to Israel, setting the stage for difficult diplomacy as Rice and US President George W. Bush try to further their agenda in the region. In an interview with The Jerusalem Post and Y-Net, Rice denounced Iran for threatening US Navy ships in the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf this weekend. "Iran should not engage in such provocations. That's what it was and it needs to stop," Rice said. "The US is going to defend its interests. It's going to defends its allies." She called Iran "the single greatest threat to the kind of Middle East we all want to see," and said that the US has a commitment to Israel's security which it takes seriously.Rice also rapped Egypt for not doing enough to stop weapons smuggling over the border into Gaza. "Egypt has to do more. Those tunnels need to be dealt with," she said. "We're prepared, obviously, to give [assistance], but the will to do it is very important here." (10,07)