Posted on 09/21/2006 12:03:03 PM PDT by Alouette
Ahmadinejad: I’m not anti-Semitic
Iranian leader tells reporters in New York, ‘There were those who had accused me of being a murderer and anti-Semitic, but I’m not an anti-Semite’; adds: We have said that under fair and just conditions we will negotiate on nuclear program
Yitzhak Benhorin Published: 09.21.06, 21:42
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said during a press conference in New York on Thursday "We love everyone in the world - Jews, Christians, Muslims, non-Muslims, non-Jews, non-Christians.
"We are against ugly acts. We are against occupation, aggression, killings and displacing people - otherwise we have no problem with ordinary people. Everyone is respected. ... We declare this in a loud voice," he said.
The Iranian leader added: “There were those who had accused me of being a murderer and anti-Semitic, but I’m not an anti-Semite.”
Ahmadinejad reiterated his stance that Iran has a right to develop nuclear technology for peaceful purposes and said he is "at a loss" about what more he can do to provide guarantees.
"The bottom line is we do not need a bomb," he said.
Ahmadinejad said Tehran is prepared to negotiate a suspension of its most sensitive nuclear work if it receives fair guarantees in talks with major powers, adding that talks with the European Union on Iran's nuclear program were on the right track and he hoped no one would try to sabotage them, an apparent reference to the United States.
"We believe those negotiations are moving on the right path. Hopefully others will not disrupt the work - in small ways perhaps. We think it is a constructive path to take," he said.
Responding to a UN Security Council demand that Iran suspend uranium enrichment, which can produce fuel for power stations or bombs, he said Tehran was prepared to discuss such a move but gave no time-frame for doing so.
"We have said that under fair conditions and just conditions we will negotiate about it," the president said without indicating a timetable for such talks.
On Wednesday Ahmadinejad met senior US government officials at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York; the top American officials present at the meeting, some of them members of the George Bush senior administration, left with the feeling that a confrontation with Iran is inevitable.
The meeting was held despite staunch opposition from US government officials and Jewish community leaders.
'More unbiased research needed'
Among those present were former National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft and former ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk.
Robert Blackwell, who served as head of the Iraq desk at the National Security Council under Condoleezza Rice, said following the meeting, “If this man represents Tehran’s position, we are heading toward a massive confrontation with Iran.”
During the meeting the Iranian president again expressed doubt over the Holocaust’s existence.
“I believe more unbiased research should be carried out on the subject,” he said, despite the presence of business mogul and Holocaust survivor Morris Greenberg.
Indyk told Ahmadinejad that Iran is doing everything in its power to stifle Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts.
The Iranian leader responded by saying, “If you believe that Iran is the reason for the failure, you are mistaken once again.”
According to Ahmadinejad, the first ‘mistake’ refers to ‘the fact that the Palestinians are paying for an event they had nothing to do with (World War Two).
He said the Palestinians are not to blame for the killing of Jews during the Holocaust, ‘if it in fact occurred.’
“Sixty million people were killed during the war, why place so much emphasis on such a small portion of them,” Ahmadinejad said.
He refused to state the number of Jews killed in the Holocaust, saying the figure should be checked.
News agencies contributed to the report
Warning! This is a high-volume ping list.
Yet in the same breath, he said that suicide bombings "were ok."
Ahmadinejad: "There were those who had accused me of being a murderer and anti-Semitic, but I’m not an anti-Semite."
Clinton: "It depends what the meaning of is is."
Nixon: "I am not a crook."
Digital Common Sense: "I am not a Geek."
Rather: "I am not a liar."
"There were those who had accused me of being a murderer and anti-Semitic, but I’m not an anti-Semite"
Well, at least he admitted he's a murderer!
I was channel surfing the other night and came across Gilbert Gottfried doing a parody of Ahmadoodiehead on the Tonight show.
So he's just a murderer.
Ahmadinejad: I’m not anti-Semitic I only supplied the missles they fired at the Isreali Citizens (including Moslems and Jews).
/SARCASM OFF
CAIR says hes misunderstood and that it is just another cultural misunderstanding.
And Hitlet wasn't a Nazi.
""We believe those negotiations are moving on the right path. Hopefully others will not disrupt the work - in small ways perhaps. We think it is a constructive path to take," he said."
Uh huh. Just like the entire conflict with Saddam and Iraq could have been avoided if we had just given Hanz Blicks a few more days to do inspections, right?
Ahmadinejad:
"I'm not Anti-Semitic, I just hate Jews"
So... nice qualifier there...("against diplacements")
Palestinians can get their own country- but Israel cannot?
"I just hate all dhimmis and want them killed," he added.
The president then said: "And God willing, with the force of God behind it, we shall soon experience a world without the United States and Zionism,"
Other than praying for the annihilation of Israel, he's not anti-semetic at all.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/10/27/ahmadinejad.reaction/index.html
Scary thing is a lot of lefties don't think he's a lunatic.
He was using very clever parsing in his speech. For example:
1. Jews are not the only "semites;" many/most of the surrounding communities are semetic, too. Hence, he can say he's not Anti-Semetic while still being anti-Jewish.
Muslims know what he was talking about.
2. In his speech, he called for a "monotheistic" religion for the world.
Now, Christians consider themselves monotheistic, so this went over their heads. BUT Muslims (and certain Orthodox Jews, to be fair) consider Christians polytheistic (the Trinity).
Ergo, this was a call for Islam to dominate the world --- a call that few besides Muslims caught.
I think that's the only picture of him not in his tan "Members Only" Jacket.
Somebody needs to tell him it's not 1984. Does he wear checkered Vans, too? Maybe surfer shorts?
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