Posted on 10/30/2005 7:33:21 PM PST by freedom44
Top News Story
Financial Times
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on Sunday night condemned international reaction to last week’s speech by President Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad calling for Israel to be “wiped off the map”.
In remarks reported by state media, Ayatollah Khamenei said the “leaders of the west and Europe should be ashamed of being so much under the influence of Zionists”
But recognising the furore sparked by Mr Ahmadi-Nejad’s remarks, he also warned officials against “negligence vis-à-vis the enemy”.
Ayatollah Khamenei rejected any link between Mr Ahmadi-Nejad’s speech and Iran’s nuclear programme. “Nuclear weapons cannot be employed to destroy regimes, rather the Palestinian people’s resistance will lead to the Israeli regime being overthrown,” he said
Mr Khamenei was speaking for the first time since Mr Ahmadi-Nejad’s controversial speech, but he reflected a general attempt by Iranian officials to deflect international criticism.
But as Tehran stressed continuity in its foreign policy, Mr Ahmadi-Nejad attacked European governments – with whom Iran says it wants to restart talks over its nuclear programme – for “lying”.
Speaking to members of the Basij Islamic militia on Sunday, Mr Ahmadi-Nejad said the Europeans’ aim was to deprive Iran of the nuclear fuel cycle.
“This government has concluded the confidence-building claimed by [some] countries is a lie,” he said, referring to requests for guarantees over the peaceful nature of Tehran’s atomic programme.
A Daily Briefing of Major News Stories on Iran:
("Denny Crane: Gun Control? For Communists. She's a liberal. Can't hunt.")
Why is Iran still a member of the UN?
Could it be.....payoffs?
I'm being facetious, I'm sure the UN is in bed with Iran - they're in bed with all terrorists and supporting nations.
Ping to you my friend... keep up the fight.
I often see your posts, some days they go by with little replies.
Please know that the domino effect of information is huge, and spreading the info for those that are intersted touches many more than you may know.
Please keep it up until Iran is free.
Join Us At Today's Iranian Alert Thread – The Most Underreported Story Of The Year!
"If you want on or off this Iran ping list, Freepmail DoctorZin”
So I guess it wasn't a trial balloon after all!
Ok, everyone who's suprised go stand in the corner.
Ahmadinejad's Israel Remarks Split Iran
http://apnews.excite.com/article/20051031/D8DIQAH80.html
Oct 31, 12:01 AM (ET)
By ALI AKBAR DAREINI
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Pro-democracy reformers denounced Iran's hard-line president Sunday for calling for Israel's annihilation, saying it harmed the country's international standing.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday that Israel is a "disgraceful blot" that should be "wiped off the map," prompting international condemnation and an Israeli demand Iran be expelled from the United Nations.
On Sunday, Ahmadinejad said his comments represented Iran's long-standing policy toward the Jewish state enunciated by the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who led the 1979 revolution, the Islamic Republic News Agency, or IRNA, said.
"These words are the same ones that the late Imam (Khomeini) said," Ahmadinejad said, explaining that he only added one sentence about "the powers of arrogance," seen as a reference to the United States. Iran does not recognize the existence of Israel and Khomeini had repeatedly called for its destruction.
But former reformist president Mohammad Khatami criticized Ahmadinejad, saying "those words have created hundreds of political and economic problems for us in the world," IRNA said.
It was the first time in a quarter century that there was a clear-cut rift over a major policy position drawn up by Khomeini.
"Ahmadinejad's remarks harmed Iran. It was irresponsible and illogical," said Rajabali Mazrouei, a prominent reformer and former deputy. "We can't be more extremist than Palestinians themselves."
Morad Veisi, a leading political analyst, said it was the first time that an Iranian head of state was openly calling for the destruction of Israel.
"Khomeini was a spiritual leader, not head of government. Ahmadinejad apparently is not even familiar with the world of politics," he said.
Extremists, however, were motivated by Ahmadinejad's remarks. About 300 men and women turned up Sunday at the offices of the Headquarters for Commemorating Martyrs of the Global Islamic Movement to volunteer for suicide bomb attacks against Israel.
A spokesman for the group said it had signed up more than 45,000 volunteers to undergo training for suicide attacks since it began recruiting in June 2004.
"More than 1000 of them have already been trained. Many of them don't need training since they are already members of the elite Revolutionary Guards and paramilitary Basij forces," Mohammad Ali Samadi said.
Several senior officials, including presidential adviser Mojtaba Rahmandoust and Parliamentary speaker Gholam Ali Haddad Adel, were at the gathering.
"The Iranian nation wants this regime removed from the world map," Rahmandoust told the gathering held at a building owned by the semiofficial Martyr Foundation.
In London, Britain said Iran poses a challenge to the international community, citing the call to wipe out Israel and charging Tehran was involved in the Iraqi insurgency and had nuclear weapons ambitions.
"Iran has to change its behavior in terms of support for terrorism, in deceit over nuclear weapons and in terms of its relationship and threats to other members of the international community," British Defense Secretary John Reid told the British Broadcasting Corporation on Sunday.
Reid said Iran appeared to be trying to confront the international community, which is considering how to respond.
Reid said he did not have conclusive proof that the Iranian government was involved in providing weapons to insurgents in Iraq. But he said there was evidence of the involvement of Iranian elements in the Iraqi insurgency.
He should be turbanated..
As for Iran. Brute force is all they understand. They are 1930's Germany right now. The longer we wait, the stronger they get.
Most likely Israel.
They can bloody their nose, but they cannot defeat Iran in a (conventional) war. A bloody nose would lead to that war.
I know they would hurt Iran greatly, but Iran wasn't involved in those wars, and Iran is much more powerful than those Arab countries. It would be a devastating stalemate, technology and training vs. manpower, and Israel could win, but they also could lose. Then it's Samson time.
With Iran offering bounties to those to attack Israel, Israel just may take it upon themselves to eliminate a big part of enemy. I do believe this that Israel is not afraid to use nuclear weapons to survive.
I agree with that. They don't have the luxury as opposed to those that judge them so harshly.
By threatening Israel, I think they were trying to do what Saddam tried in '91: change the subject. Didn't work then, won't help matters for the current Iranian regime now (although it won't necessarily hurt it either, given U.S. reluctance to take on these cavemen).
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