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Zarif says Iran an historic haven of the Jewish people
Jerusalem Post ^ | 3-5-15

Posted on 03/05/2015 4:32:24 PM PST by SJackson

Iranian FM Zarif says that Netanyahu's position reflects "bigotry" over facts.

WASHINGTON – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says that his country has saved the Jewish people three times in history, and does not seek their annihilation.

In an interview with NBC News, Zarif rejected characterizations to the contrary put forth by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this week in an address to a joint meeting of the US Congress.

“Today the Jewish people face another attempt by yet another Persian potentate to destroy us,” Netanyahu said on the eve of Purim, commemorating the salvation of Iran’s Jews under threats of genocide from the ancient Persian kingdom.

“Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei spews the oldest hatred, the oldest hatred of anti-Semitism with the newest technology.”

But Zarif rejected the accusation that Iran’s opposition to the existence of the Israeli government, which it calls the Zionist regime, is equivalent to anti-Semitism.

“He even distorts his own scripture,” Zarif told his interviewer, Ann Curry, addressing Netanyahu’s reference to Purim. “If you read the Book of Esther, you will see that it was the Iranian king who saved the Jews. If you read the Old Testament, you will see that it was an Iranian king who saved the Jews from Babylon. Esther has a town in Iran where our Jewish population, which is the largest in the Middle East, visits on a regular basis.”

According to Iranian government figures, roughly 8,800 Jews live in the country, out of a total 26,000 Jews in the entire Middle East outside Israel.

Zarif said that Netanyahu’s position reflected “bigotry” over facts, and asserted that Iran “has saved Jews three times in its history: Once during that time of a prime minister who was trying to kill the Jews, and the king saved the Jews; again during the time of Cyrus the Great, where he saved the Jews from Babylon, and during the Second World War, where Iran saved the Jews.”

Zarif’s allusion to the Holocaust is notable: The morning after Netanyahu’s speech, conservative newspapers in Iran ran cartoons denying that Hitler’s genocide against Jews ever happened.

“For those who believe that Iran threatens the Jewish state, but not the Jewish people,” Netanyahu said in his address, “listen to Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, Iran’s chief terrorist proxy. He said: ‘If all the Jews gather in Israel, it will save us the trouble of chasing them down around the world.’” Speaking after Netanyahu’s speech, US President Barack Obama thoroughly criticized the prime minister’s remarks on his position with Iran in talks over its nuclear program. But he expressed agreement with several aspects of the speech, including Netanyahu’s characterization of Iran as the leading state sponsor of terrorism worldwide, and “the fact that Iran has repeatedly threatened Israel and engaged in the most venomous of anti-Semitic statements.”

“No one can dispute that,” Obama said.


TOPICS: Israel; News/Current Events; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: crus; cyrus; esther; iran; iranjews; israel; javadzarif; judaism; mejews; middleeastjews; purim; waronterror; xerxes; zarif
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1 posted on 03/05/2015 4:32:24 PM PST by SJackson
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To: dennisw; Cachelot; Nix 2; veronica; Catspaw; knighthawk; Alouette; Optimist; weikel; Lent; GregB; ..
Middle East and terrorism, occasional political and Jewish issues Ping List. High Volume

If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.

..................

Probably tells this to John Kerry every day.

Zarif wears a suit, wonder if he'll get invited to the White House to sign his non treaty treaty.

2 posted on 03/05/2015 4:33:39 PM PST by SJackson (“ISIS is now going to regret this … because King Abdullah is not Barack Obama, Rep. Duncan Hunter)
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To: SJackson

My response to the Foreign Minister would be, when the Persians convert back to Zoroastrianism, then they can be trusted again.


3 posted on 03/05/2015 4:35:41 PM PST by gusty
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To: SJackson

I believe that Mohammad Javad Zarif has room in his moniker for one more “name” and should therfore henceforth refer to himself as Mohammad Javad Taqiyya Zarif!

but why lie about something so obvious??


4 posted on 03/05/2015 4:36:17 PM PST by MeshugeMikey ("Never, Never, Never, Give Up," Winston Churchill ><>)
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To: MeshugeMikey; dennisw; Cachelot; Nix 2; veronica; Catspaw; knighthawk; Alouette; Optimist; ...

“but why lie about something so obvious??”

Iranian leaders/terrorists are amazingly obtuse. This will help us when we finally take them out : )


5 posted on 03/05/2015 4:38:34 PM PST by stephenjohnbanker (My Batting Average( 1,000) (GOPe is that easy to read))
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To: SJackson

Obama’s new talking points.


6 posted on 03/05/2015 4:39:29 PM PST by freedom6178
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To: stephenjohnbanker

They not only appear deranged and evil..they also appear to be utterly OTHER WORLDLY to put it politely.

i’d love to be a fly on the wall at Mossad headquarters for a few days


7 posted on 03/05/2015 4:42:44 PM PST by MeshugeMikey ("Never, Never, Never, Give Up," Winston Churchill ><>)
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To: SJackson
“He even distorts his own scripture,” Zarif told his interviewer, Ann Curry, addressing Netanyahu’s reference to Purim. “If you read the Book of Esther, you will see that it was the Iranian king who saved the Jews.

Cyrus did defeat Nebuchadnezzar, but the Cyrus had his own agenda with Nebuchadnezzar. It certainly didn't involve Jews. The Jews went back to Judea. The Jews didn't follow Cyrus back to Persia.

Anyways, Muslims are the problem and in this case, Muslims in Iran. Muslims have persecuted Jews from day one. Zarif needs to fast forward in his history a little bit.

8 posted on 03/05/2015 4:43:50 PM PST by ConservativeInPA (#JuSuisCharlesMartel)
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To: stephenjohnbanker

9 posted on 03/05/2015 4:44:31 PM PST by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either satire or opinion. Or both.)
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To: SJackson

That was before 1979 when the Ayatollah Khomeini returned to Iran! It could be said of the past, but it’s certainly NOT true now!


10 posted on 03/05/2015 4:44:49 PM PST by Star Traveler (Remember to keep the Messiah of Israel in the One-World Government that we look forward to coming)
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To: BenLurkin

Oh man, that is a keeper!!


11 posted on 03/05/2015 4:47:07 PM PST by stephenjohnbanker (My Batting Average( 1,000) (GOPe is that easy to read))
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To: MeshugeMikey

THAT would be interesting.


12 posted on 03/05/2015 4:48:14 PM PST by stephenjohnbanker (My Batting Average( 1,000) (GOPe is that easy to read))
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To: gusty

That’s exactly what got the Shah in trouble. The mullahs demonized him for trying to reconvert Iran back to pagan Zoroastrianism.

Of course, all he was really doing was glorifying Pre-Islamic Iran.

I do hope for a Zoroastrian revival...


13 posted on 03/05/2015 4:48:56 PM PST by Shadow44
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To: BenLurkin

WONDERFUL cartoon!!

Thank you!


14 posted on 03/05/2015 4:51:44 PM PST by MeshugeMikey ("Never, Never, Never, Give Up," Winston Churchill ><>)
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To: SJackson

I think the last time Iran was at all “safe” for Jews was when they had a Zoroastrian emperor. (Its been a while)


15 posted on 03/05/2015 4:51:57 PM PST by cripplecreek ("For by wise guidance you can wage your war")
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To: Star Traveler

Yes, more accurately nearly three millennia ago. The WWII analogy is inaccurate. There were/was at least one Iranian diplomat who aided French Jews. And in a sense Iran was a refuge post 1941 if anyone could get there. But that’s because the Nazi supporting Shah, forgot his name, was replaced when the Brits occupied the country in mid late 1941.


16 posted on 03/05/2015 4:53:56 PM PST by SJackson (“ISIS is now going to regret this … because King Abdullah is not Barack Obama, Rep. Duncan Hunter)
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To: SJackson

Well, they have a better record than Europe...


17 posted on 03/05/2015 4:54:12 PM PST by jjotto ("Ya could look it up!")
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To: Shadow44

Good thing we had a president far-sighted enough to throw the Shah under the bus.


18 posted on 03/05/2015 4:55:16 PM PST by samtheman
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To: ConservativeInPA

You’re right, Cyrus was simply OK with being rid of them, at least the ones who wanted to leave. Needless to say Zarif didn’t mean to imply there were Jews in Israel 2700 or 2800 years ago, or that Persia not only recognized Israel as the Jewish home, but encouraged them to return there. No one at the press conference was smart enough to ask.


19 posted on 03/05/2015 4:56:35 PM PST by SJackson (“ISIS is now going to regret this … because King Abdullah is not Barack Obama, Rep. Duncan Hunter)
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To: SJackson

Good catch.


20 posted on 03/05/2015 4:59:51 PM PST by gusty
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