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 Irans Jews under threats of genocide from the ancient Persian kingdom.
Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei spews the oldest hatred, the oldest hatred of anti-Semitism with the newest technology.
But Zarif rejected the accusation that Irans 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 Netanyahus 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 Netanyahus 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.
Zarifs allusion to the Holocaust is notable: The morning after Netanyahus speech, conservative newspapers in Iran ran cartoons denying that Hitlers 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, Irans 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 Netanyahus speech, US President Barack Obama thoroughly criticized the prime ministers remarks on his position with Iran in talks over its nuclear program. But he expressed agreement with several aspects of the speech, including Netanyahus 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.
If youd 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.
My response to the Foreign Minister would be, when the Persians convert back to Zoroastrianism, then they can be trusted again.
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??
“but why lie about something so obvious??”
Iranian leaders/terrorists are amazingly obtuse. This will help us when we finally take them out : )
Obama’s new talking points.
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
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.
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!
Oh man, that is a keeper!!
THAT would be interesting.
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...
WONDERFUL cartoon!!
Thank you!
I think the last time Iran was at all “safe” for Jews was when they had a Zoroastrian emperor. (Its been a while)
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.
Well, they have a better record than Europe...
Good thing we had a president far-sighted enough to throw the Shah under the bus.
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.
Good catch.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.