Deutsche Welle, NRT, AFP, Reuters & DPA
Ahead of this week's UN General Assembly in New York, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad got a slap on the wrist from the Swedish EU presidency for denying the Holocaust during an anti-Israel rally. "The presidency of the European Union condemns statements by President Ahmadinejad at the Quds Day rally in Tehran where he repeated denials of the Holocaust and of the right to exist of the state of Israel," the Swedish EU presidency said in a statement.
"Such statements encourage anti-Semitism and hatred. We call on the leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran to contribute constructively to peace and security in the Middle East." Ahmadinejad told a crowd at Tehran University on Friday that the Holocaust was a lie based on an "unprovable and mythical" claim. Germany's Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier immediately condemned the remarks, calling Ahmadinejad a disgrace to his country. "With his intolerable tirades, he shames his country," and his "anti-Semitism ... must be collectively condemned," he said.
Countries including Britain, France and the United States have also condemned Ahmadinejad's statements. In Britain, Foreign Secretary David Miliband described the comments as ignorant and abhorrent. In Washington, a White House spokesman said the speech only served to further isolate the Islamic Republic. On Sunday, during celebrations marking the end of Ramadan, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei blasted Israel, Western powers and foreign broadcasters, saying that a "Zionist cancer" was gnawing into the lives of Islamic nations.
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