Newsmaker Profile: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (help·info)[1] (born October 28, 1956)[2] is the sixth and current President of the Islamic Republic of Iran. He became president on August 6, 2005 after winning the 2005 presidential election by popular vote.[3] Before becoming president, he was the mayor of Tehran. He is the highest directly elected official in the country; however, according to Article 113[4] of Constitution of Iran, he has less total power than the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces of Iran and has the final word in all aspects of foreign and domestic policies.[4][5][6]

Ahmadinejad is a critic of the George W. Bush Administration and supports strengthened relations with Russia, Venezuela, Syria, and the Persian Gulf states.[7][8][9] He has said Iran's nuclear program is for peaceful purposes and has refused to end enrichment despite United Nations Security Council resolutions.[10]

He has called for the dissolution of the state of Israel and its government, which he does not regard as legitimate or representative of the population,[11][12] and for free elections in the region. He believes that the Palestinians need a stronger voice in the region's future.[13][14] One of his most controversial statements was one in which, according to some translations, he called for Israel to be "wiped off the map," but interpretations of this statement vary widely.[15][16][17][18][19] He has also been condemned for describing the Holocaust as a myth.[15][20] which has led to accusations of anti-semitism.[21] In response to these criticisms, Ahmadinejad said “No, I am not anti-Jew, I respect them very much.”[22]

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is the surprise upset candidate in the Iranian Presidential race. A small man with big ideas and a flair for the dramatic Mayor Ahmadinejad of Tehran is disregarded by everyone except for the voters of Iran. In Iranian politics Ahmadinejad is among the hyper devout. On one hand he tends to define everything in politics as directly relating to Islam. If you were to ask Ahmadinejad would agree that the first step in good government is Islam (submission to God). This does not resonate with the worldly and the left leaning reformist intellectuals who make much of the political noise in Iran politics.

Iran Presidential Campaign 2005: Title: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Presidential Biography

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He is widely regarded as a great mayor and was a finalist in the World Mayor 2005. Leading by example Ahmadinejad has been known to don a street sweepers uniform and take a broom to the streets. Ahmadinejad is an Engineer by training having gotten his degree from Iran University of Science & Technology) where he was a "Famous Faculty" member. He was widely respected by students and faculty alike.

Iran Presidential Campaign 2005: Title: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Presidential Biography

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Mahmoud Ahmadinejad must be counted as one of the most anti-American leaders in Iranian politics. An Ahmadinejad win would if anything accellerate the Iranian Nuclear program. Additionally increased support for Hezbollah in Palestine and funding of Shia interests in Iraq would be probable. Economically Ahmadinejad can be anticipated to halt the Government trend towards privatization. Sadly there is a potential that while on one hand weakening Iran domestically he might also escalate tensions that could lead to hostilities.

Iran Presidential Campaign 2005: Title: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Presidential Biography

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bhkad said:

Newsmaker Profile: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad



Re: He tends to define everything in politics as directly relating to Islam.





Al-Ahram Weekly | Profile | Mahmoud Ahmedinejad: Justice versus freedom

Re: Respect as a Professor and as a Mayor.



Re: Anti-Americanism & intent to escalate Interntional tensions.

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Ahmadinejad, who defeated former Iranian president Hashemi Rafsanjani and received over 62 per cent of votes cast, won on a ticket stating clearly that he thought justice and freedom stood in contradiction, and he came down firmly on the side of justice.

Al-Ahram Weekly | Profile | Mahmoud Ahmedinejad: Justice versus freedom

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In the same year Ahmadinejad joined the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRG) and went on to work for the Internal Security Department. He developed a reputation as a notorious interrogator and was believed to have worked as an executioner at Evin prison where thousands of political prisoners were tortured and executed in the 1980s.

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In 1986 Ahmadinejad was promoted to lead the Special Brigade of the Revolutionary Guards in Kermanshah and was stationed at the Ramazan garrison, close to the Iran-Iraq border. Ramazan garrison was the headquarters of the IRG's extra-territorial operations, planning, organising and carrying out attacks beyond Iran borders.

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While in Kermanshah Ahmadinejad was believed to have established the elite hit squad, the Quds Force, and is thought to be responsible for a number of political assassination operations in Europe and the Middle East. The Quds Force is now active in Iraq, using Al-Amara as its base. The Badr Corps -- an off-shoot of the Badr Brigade, formed of Iraqi soldiers and officers who fled to Iran during the Iran-Iraq war, and which Ahmadinejad took a leading role in forming -- and members of the Iranian Quds Force have been accused of carrying out dozens of assassinations in Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime. Yet another Iraqi group, the Movement of Hizbullah, established to launch a guerrilla war against Saddam in the Ahwar area, is also thought to be his brainchild. The Hizbullah Movement is now under the leadership of Abdul-Karim Al-Mohamedawi, a member of the Transitional National Authority (TNA.) The Ramazan garrison also provided military training to members of the Lebanese Hizbullah and other Arab groups affiliated to Iran.

[...]

In 1997 the Khatami government removed Ahmadinejad from his post and he returned to his old university Elmo- Sanaat to teach. During this period he began organising the gangs of violent Islamic vigilantes that came to be known as Ansar Hizbullah.

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His landslide victory was secured on a manifesto that focussed on domestic issues -- eradicating corruption, ensuring greater employment and raising the living standards of the poor. Should he fail to deliver in these key areas many expect he will attempt to deflect attention by drawing his supporters into issues beyond Iran's borders.

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The mobilisation of the IRG and Basijs may signal the emergence of a politically oppressive regime that will rely heavily on paramilitary and religious propaganda as Iran moves from the oppression of the mullahs to a semi- military dictatorship. In order to continue on such a path Ahmadinejad will foreground religion and nationalism, though his most immediate task will be to fulfil the pledges made to those who voted him into office. He will have to display success in fighting corruption as well as impose measures aimed at securing greater social justice.

[...]

For the young people who make up 70 per cent of the population job opportunities and an improved quality of life are the biggest concerns. For all the debate over freedom and democracy it was the economy and the social justice that mattered most to voters.

Ahmadinejad's campaign exploited widespread resentment at the growing gap between rich and poor. He played up his working-class roots and vowed to increase aid to the needy and to young families across Iran. His experience as mayor of Tehran was helpful in this respect, since Ahmadinejad was able to project himself as a populist public servant in touch with bread-and- butter issues such as unemployment and housing.

Although, the day after his victory, Ahmadinejad promised to pursue a moderate line it is difficult to imagine this product of the religious right, of the IRG and the vigilante Basijs militia, the volunteer force established by the former Ayatollah Khomeini to crush internal dissent, being able to resist the blandishments of the ultra- conservatives.

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Ahmadinejad's victory will have far reaching consequences in Iraq. A great deal is at stake -- certainly for the Iranian opposition group the People's Mujahideen and for Iraqi military personnel and technocrats who helped in the war against Iran. Even the Shia political alliance is jeopardised by the ascendancy in Tehran of hardliners willing to accept nothing less than total loyalty from Baghdad.

Iranian policy since the fall of Saddam has been to ensure that Iraq can never again be used against it as it was during the 1980-1988 war.

The day after the Iranian presidential elections several Iraqi newspapers carried advertisement denouncing the People's Mujahideen as a terrorist organisation. The Sadrists paid for the ad in which a picture of Mohamed Sadeq Al-Sadr, the father of Muqtada Al-Sadr, was prominent. The People's Mujahideen, it is now obvious, will have to look elsewhere for shelter.

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Though now divided Shia paramilitary troops could coordinate their actions under pressure from the new Iranian leadership. Badr, Al-Mehdi and Movement of Hizbullah fighters could quickly derail moderate Shia policy in Iraq where moderate Shia leaders will have to pay a price for supporting Rafsanjani in the elections unless they make it crystal clear they are fully behind the new leadership in Tehran. Soon there is likely to be a new wave of political visits by Iraq's Shia leaders to Tehran offering their loyalty to the president-elect.

Iran will continue to use Iraq's porous borders to pursue its regional policy objectives. The smuggling of drugs to the Gulf region via Iraq is impacting on the societies of the Gulf states and will continue, alongside the smuggling of weapons and people.

Since the fall of Saddam southern Iraq has undergone a major demographic change. On entering an Iraqi police station in Basra you should not be surprised to hear Persian, rather than Arabic, being spoken. Iran is rumoured to be paying at least $20 million a month in the south for those on its payroll.

Recent arrests by Iraqi forces on the border with Iran lend credence to the rumours. On 10 April Iraqi forces arrested 30 armed Iranian agents. Six individuals, of whom five were Iranian and one Iraqi, were apprehended by the Iraqi National Guard at a checkpoint near Maqdadiya in Iraq's Diyala province. They were carrying light arms and RPG rockets intended for use in operations in Diyala. In a separate incident 25 mercenaries, who received orders from Iran's Fajr garrison, were detained by Iraqi security forces. Mercenaries who had deserted from the same network claimed that the arrested had been involved in the assassination of the former governor of Baghdad. Fajr, which is close to Ramazan garrison, has long been an operational base for the IRG and its elite Quds Force.

Tehran has more than 40,000 agents in Iraq on its payroll according to a 28 February report broadcast by Simaye Azadi, the Iranian opposition Persian- language satellite television channel close to the opposition National Council of Resistance.

On 14 February an agent from Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security was apprehended carrying dozens of fake passports in the Iraqi city of Al-Amara. The Iranian was accompanied by a Saudi national who was also in possession of counterfeit passports.

In Najaf, in August last year, Iraqi National Guards detained dozens of Iranian agents and unearthed caches of Iranian- made weapons. Now, with the integration of the Badr Corps within Iraq's own forces Tehran will be better able to cover its tracks in Iraq.

While Iraq's Shia Marjaaia may be able to maintain a balance between Iraqi and Iranian interests for the time being the aging Ali Al-Sistani is unlikely to be able to play that role much longer. And Iran understands that Marjaaia is not only a matter of religious leadership; it means, above all, money. If the Shia Marjaaia move from Qom to Najaf Iran's religious elite will lose a great deal of potential income. In Qom they will fight hard to stay in control.

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Hatuey said:

I just thought he was batshit insane. Now I know there is actually intelligence behind that big ugly face.

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Ahmadinejad is very much the man of secret agencies -- of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and affiliated paramilitary groups such as the Basijs, the volunteer paramilitary organisation operating under the IRG that was instructed to vote for Ahmadinejad and persuade others to do so

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bhkad said:

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Al-Ahram Weekly | Profile | Mahmoud Ahmedinejad: Justice versus freedom

I find it interesting that Putin of Russia AND Ahmadinejad were both formerly in their countrys' secret agencies. And for the record, President G. H. W. Bush (#41), was formerly CIA Director.

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Iriemon said:

Is there some point about regurgitating 3 year old articles about Ahmadinejad?<snip>

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Once again, I propose that DP create a new category in the menu to be devoted to information about the people in the news and that this category be called, Newsmakers Profile.

http://www.debatepolitics.com/feedb...wsmakers-profile-category.html#post1057605536

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As Mayor, he reversed many of the policies adopted by previous moderate and reformist mayors, placing serious religious emphasis on the activites of the cultural centers by turning them into prayer halls during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. He closed fast-food restaurants and required male city employees to have beards and wear long sleeves. He instituted the separation of elevators for men and women in the municiple offices. He also suggested the burial of the martyrs of the Iran-Iraq war in Tehran's major city squares.

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/iran/ahmadinejad.htm

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According to sources, Ahmadinejad projected himself as a simple man and reportedly lived a very Spartan lifestyle in a simple apartment flat with his family. He is married with two sons and one daughter.

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Ahmadinejad's personal religious views reflected that of Hojjatieh Shi’ism, a radical interpretation of Shi’ism with messianic and apocalyptic overtones that predict a period of universal chaos before the return of the Mahdi, the 12th Imam, who went into occultation or hiding. The Hojjatieh was created in the 1950s to eliminate the Bahai faith from Iran. In 1983, Hojjatieh Shi'ism was banned by Ayatollah Khomeini but was subsequently revived. Analysts put forth the interpretation that Ahmadinejad preceived his personal role to be the divine harbinger of the Mahdi's coming, to pave "the path for the glorious reappearance of Imam Mahdi." Ahmadinejad denied reports that his cabinet members were ordered to write a pact of loyalty with the 12th Imam and cast the pact into the well of Qom where the Imam is believed to reside. Reaffirming his religious views, Ahmadinejad said:

"The ultimate promise of all Divine religions will be fulfilled with the emergence of a perfect human being [the 12th Imam], who is heir to all prophets. He will lead the world to justice and absolute peace. Oh mighty Lord, I pray to you to hasten the emergence of your last repository, the promised one."​

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Marja-e Taqlid (Object of Emulation)

A zealous representative of Hojjatieh Shi’ism is Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi Mesbah-Yazdi of the Haqqani School located in the Iranian city of Qom. The Haqqani school is a school of thought known for advocating clerical control over the government and society. Yazdi also serves as the personal marja-e taqlid or 'object of emulation' for Ahmadinejad. In Shi'ism, lay persons are expected to have a marja-e taqlid. Yazdi issued a fatwa, or Holy Order, in support of Ahmadinejad's 2005 election.

Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi was dubbed "Professor Crocodile" in a cartoon by Nikahang Kowsar depicting a crocodile strangling a journalist with its tail. Although Kowsar claimed that no specific person was represented, Yazdi's name rhymes with the Farsi word for crocodile, and Kowsar received a prison sentence.

Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi's extreme conservativism exceeded that of even the Supreme Guide Ayatollah Khamenei. He suggested that anyone with a new interpretation of the Qu'ran should be "socked in the mouth," and promoted the continuation of the death penalty and public flogging. He advocated the isolation of Iran from Western influences, and encouraged the faithful to fight against democracy as a 'misleading' idea. In November 2002 in a pre-sermon speech in Tehran, Yazdi maintained that "the prophets of God did not believe in pluralism. They believed that only one idea was right."

Yazdi headed various clerical institutions, and reportedly earned an income through his involvement in government businesses such as the sugar trade. Reports suggested that Yazid is the clerical patron of the military-security faction. He was accused of granting religious sanctions to death squads and supporting the mission of suicide bombers. On the subject of Martyrdom, Yazdi stated, "when protecting Islam and the Muslim ummah (community of believers) depends on martyrdom operations, it not only is allowed, but even is an obligation (wajib)." In December 2006, he was elected as one of 16 representatives of Tehran to the 68 member Council of Experts.

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Campaign Promises

Ahmadinejad was perhaps the most conservative of the seven candidates who were permitted to compete in the presidential race. Ahmadinejad resurrected the fervor of the 1979 Islamic Revolution during the campaign by saying Iran "did not have a revolution in order to have democracy, but to have an Islamic government." The Rafsanjani campaign attempted to characterize Ahmadinejad as an extremist intent on rolling back reform. They called Ahmadinejad a fundamentalist who planned to bring back a Taliban-style of governing to Iran.

Ahmadinejad, a hardline conservative and Revolutionary Guard veteran, mounted a surprisingly strong challenge with a populist message aimed at the economically disadvantaged. He promised to strengthen social safety nets, offer subsidized food and housing for the poor, and institute monthly stipends for citizens. Much of Ahmadinejad's support in the first round of voting came from poorer areas such as South Tehran.

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Ahmadinejad appeared to have a serious ideological and moral opposition to Israel, and the secular American culture and society. In a 07 June 2005 interview on state television, Ahmadinejad said Iran was the target of a destructive Western cultural onslaught. He claimed the West intended to undermine the self-confidence of Iranian managers and influence the young. To counter this, he said teachers must have greater access to resources.

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During the campaign, in mid-June 2005, Ahmadinejad told a news conference he could not foresee improved ties with any country that "seeks hostility" against Iran, a possible reference to the United States. "The US administration cut off ties unilaterally to lay waste to the Islamic republic," he argued. "They want to restore them today for the same reason."

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Ahmadinejad, in comments that drew sharp criticism from the Foreign Ministry, accused Iran's nuclear negotiators on 20 June 2005 of being weak and bowing to European pressure at the negotiation table. According to Ahmadinejad, "those who are handling the talks are terrified, and before they even sit down at the negotiating table they retreat 500 kilometers.... A popular and fundamentalist government will quickly change that."

Rafsanjani had been endorsed by Iran's top nuclear officials. Gholamreza Aghazadeh, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said that Rafsanjani was the only person who could positively present Iran's position, given his influence, moderate views and political clout. Rafsanjani loyalist Hassan Rowhani, Iran's top nuclear negotiator, said Iran needed a powerful and experienced president to successfully handle the issue - an open reference to Rafsanjani.

Ahmadinejad's campaign issued a statement which described Iran's nuclear program as "a flood which cannot be stopped by a match stick ... It's impossible to stop a nation's scientific progress with a bunch of irrelevant words ... We will hold talks from a rational point of view and if they accept our legitimate right we'll cooperate ... The analysts say no country, no matter how powerful they are, can attack Iran. It would be suicidal for a country to attack Iran... so we must not bend to threats." The statement warned that Iran would not accept protracted negotiations and "the kind of games they have played with Palestinians". Ahmadinejad said that Iran's access to nuclear technology is the fruit of the nation's progress, stressing no one can prevent a nation from progressing.

At the same time, during the run-off election in June 2005, Ahmadinejad stated he would continue dialogue with Europe over Iran's nuclear program. "We will continue the current policies of the Islamic Republic. In principle, dialogue with Europe, Asia, and Africa is within the framework of our foreign policy. And of course, in order to defend the rights of our nation, we will continue the [nuclear] dialogue [with Europe]," Ahmadinejad said. Commenting on the country's foreign policy, Ahmadinejad said Iran is interested in friendly ties with all world states and nations. Tehran is ready to cooperate with any government which has no hostile attitude toward the Iranian nation, he said.

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Ahmadinejad had complained of "uncontrolled" cultural policies, and accused organised networks of "propogating decadence." Some supporters anticipated that girls would have to wear the proper hijab, access to improper websites would be blocked, West-struck (gharbzadeh) professors would be banned, and satellite receivers would be eliminated.

On 22 June 2005, Ahmadinejad denied rumors that he would force women to wear the head-to-toe Islamic covering called a chador. He said Iran's main problems are unemployment and housing, not what to wear. "Are hairstyles the real problem [of our youth]? They can cut their hair the way they want," Ahmadinejad said. "It's none of our business. We have to take care of the real problems of the country. The government should put order in the economy and create calm."

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Iran clerics rebuke Ahmadinejad over 'hidden imam'
May 7, 2008
05:47 AM US/Eastern

Clerics have told President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to stick to more worldly issues after he was quoted as saying the "hidden imam" of Shiite Islam was directing Iran.

Ahmadinejad has always been a devotee of the Mahdi, the twelfth imam of Shiite Islam, who Shiites believe disappeared more than a thousand years ago and who will return one day to usher in a new era of peace and harmony.

But in a speech to theology students broadcast by state television on Monday, Ahmadinejad went further than ever before in emphasising his belief that the Mahdi is playing a critical role in Iran's day-to-day politics.

"The Imam Mahdi is in charge of the world and we see his hand directing all the affairs of the country," he said in the speech, which appears to date from last month but has only now been broadcast.

"We must solve Iran's internal problems as quickly as possible. Time is lacking. A movement has started for us to occupy ourselves with our global responsibilities, which are arriving with great speed."​

[...]

"For sure, the hidden imam does not approve of inflation of 20 percent, the high cost of living and numerous other errors," he said, according to the Kargozaran daily.​

Two leading clerics retorted that Ahmadinejad would be better off concentrating on Iran's social problems -- most notably its double-digit inflation -- than indulging in such mystical rhetoric.

Iran clerics rebuke Ahmadinejad over 'hidden imam'

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May 8, 2008 18:38 | Updated May 8, 2008 19:36
Ahmadinejad: Israel a 'stinking corpse'
By JPOST.COM STAFF

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

"Those who think they can revive the stinking corpse of the usurping and fake Israeli regime by throwing a birthday party are seriously mistaken," the official IRNA news agency quoted Ahmadinejad as having said.

"Today the reason for the Zionist regime's existence is questioned, and this regime is on its way to annihilation."​

Ahmadinejad further stated that Israel "has reached the end like a dead rat after being slapped by the Lebanese" - referring to the Second Lebanon War in the summer of 2006.

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Ahmadinejad: Israel to be 'swept away soon'
Posted : Tue, 13 May 2008 12:41:00 GMT

Tehran - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Tuesday that Israel would "be soon swept away" from the Palestinian Territories by the Palestinians. It is the second time within less than three years that the Iranian president predicted the eradication of the Jewish state.

The first time was in 2005 when Ahmadinejad hoped that Israel would be eradicated from the Middle East map.

"This terrorist and criminal state is backed by foreign powers, but this regime would soon be swept away by the Palestinians," Ahmadinejad said in a press conference in Tehran.

Referring to worldwide celebrations for the 60th anniversary of Israel's foundation, he said that "it would be futile to hold a birthday ceremony for something which is already dead."

"As far as the regional countries are concerned, this regime does not exist," Ahmadinejad added.

The Iranian president said last week that the anniversary feasts could not save this "rotten and stinking corpse."

Ahmadinejad caused international outrage in the past by hoping for the eradication of Israel, the relocation of the Jewish state to Europe or Alaska and questioning the historic dimensions of the Holocaust.

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Ali Larijani

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's newly-elected parliament picked one of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's potential rivals in next year's presidential election for the influential post of speaker on Sunday, official media reported.

Ali Larijani, who quit as Iran's chief nuclear negotiator last year citing differences with Ahmadinejad over how to handle the country's atomic dispute with the West, received a clear majority of 237 votes in the 290-member legislature.

He was beaten in the 2005 presidential race but analysts expect him to run again in 2009. They say he may become a rallying point for conservative MPs who oppose the president's economic policies and his fiery speeches against the West.

"Obviously the Majles (parliament) wanted a stronger speaker, someone who can stand up to Ahmadinejad," said one Iranian analyst, who declined to be named.

Iranian parliament picks Larijani as speaker | World | Reuters

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2005 "World Without Zionism" speech

On October 26, 2005, IRIB News, an English-language subsidiary of the state-controlled Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, filed a story on Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's recent speech to the "World Without Zionism" conference in Asia. The story was entitled: Ahmadinejad: Israel must be wiped off the map.[1] The story was picked up by Western news agencies and quickly made headlines around the world. On October 30, The New York Times published a full transcript of the speech in which Ahmadinejad was quoted in part as follows:

"Our dear Imam (referring to Ayatollah Khomeini) said that the occupying regime must be wiped off the map and this was a very wise statement. We cannot compromise over the issue of Palestine. Is it possible to create a new front in the heart of an old front. This would be a defeat and whoever accepts the legitimacy of this regime has in fact, signed the defeat of the Islamic world. Our dear Imam targeted the heart of the world oppressor in his struggle, meaning the occupying regime. I have no doubt that the new wave that has started in Palestine, and we witness it in the Islamic world too, will eliminate this disgraceful stain from the Islamic world."[2]​

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Israel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Ahmadinejad says Israel will "disappear"
Tue Jun 3, 2008 3:16am EDT

By Hossein Jaseb and Fredrik Dahl

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's president said on Monday Israel would soon disappear off the map and that the "satanic power" of the United States faced destruction, in his latest verbal attack on the Islamic Republic's arch-enemies.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was speaking at a gathering of foreign guests marking this week's 19th anniversary of the death of Iran's late revolutionary leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the official IRNA news agency said.

"You should know that the criminal and terrorist Zionist regime which has 60 years of plundering, aggression and crimes in its file has reached the end of its work and will soon disappear off the geographical scene," he said.

Turning to the United States, Ahmadinejad said the era of decline and destruction of its "satanic power" had begun.

Ahmadinejad, who often rails against the West, is expected to travel to Rome on Tuesday to attend a U.N. summit on global food security. It will be his first visit to western Europe since he won the presidency in 2005.

In Washington, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino described Ahmadinejad's comments as "that kind of rhetoric that just serves to further isolate the Iranian people".

U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack condemned the Iranian president's latest comments on Israel: "Again, more hateful vitriol coming from President Ahmadinejad."

"DEAD END"

The United States, which severed ties with Iran shortly after its 1979 Islamic revolution, is leading efforts to isolate Tehran over its disputed nuclear program, which the West suspects is a front for developing atomic bombs.

Washington says it wants a diplomatic resolution to the nuclear row but has not ruled out military action if that fails.

Iran, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, says its nuclear program is only aimed at generating electricity and insists it will not bow to Western pressure.

Opposition to Israel is a fundamental principle in Shi'ite Muslim Iran, which backs Palestinian militants opposed to peace with the Jewish state.

A 2005 statement by Ahmadinejad saying that Israel should be "wiped off the map" outraged the international community.

The call was originally made by Khomeini and Ahmadinejad referred to this at another speech on Monday evening at the shrine near Tehran where the Islamic Republic's founder is buried, saying "his ideal is about to be materialized today."

He added: "The Zionist regime is in a total dead end and, God willing, this desire will soon be realized and the epitome of perversion will disappear off the face of the world."

The crowd chanted "Death to Israel" and "Death to America."

In April, a senior Iranian army commander said Iran would respond to any military attack from Israel by "eliminating" it.

Some analysts have speculated that Israel might attack Iran to stop its nuclear work. Iran says it has developed ballistic missiles able to hit Israel and U.S. bases in the region.

Ahmadinejad says Israel will disappear | International | Reuters

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Ahmadinejad Says Bush Administration Can't Hurt Iran (Update2)

By Ladane Nasseri

June 11 (Bloomberg) -- George W. Bush's administration is in its dying days and won't be able to harm Iran, the Islamic Republic's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, said.

``It's Bush's dream to harm Iran's nation,'' Ahmadinejad said today during a televised speech in the western Iranian city of Shahre Kord. ``You thought you would be able to do something but your term came to an end and you will not be capable of harming even 1 centimeter of Iran's sacred land.''

The U.S. has led the push for international sanctions to punish Iran for flouting United Nations demands for a halt to its nuclear program. The U.S. has accused Iran of seeking to build an atomic weapon, while Ahmadinejad's government says the work is designed to fuel power stations.

``All options are on the table, and my first choice is to solve this diplomatically,'' Bush said today at a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel following talks at Schloss Meseberg, a government guesthouse about 70 kilometers (44 miles) north of Berlin. ``If they choose to continue to be obstinate, there will be additional sanctions.''

Deterring Iran's nuclear ambitions is the focus of Bush's weeklong farewell trip to Europe. He travels to Rome later today and will also make stops in Paris and London.

`Will Not Retreat'

Iran won't stop its nuclear work, Ahmadinejad stressed.

``You think that you can force the Iranian nation to back down from its legitimate rights through threats and pressures,'' Iran's state-run Islamic Republic News Agency cited Ahmadinejad as saying today in another speech, in the western town of Sefid Dasht. He added, ``The Iranian nation will not retreat even 1 inch.''

Bush, who has seven months remaining in office, won backing yesterday from the European Union for tighter sanctions against Iranian banks, another step aimed at hampering Iran's ability to build nuclear weapons. European Commission President Jose Barroso, meeting with Bush in Slovenia, agreed to take ``additional measures'' to ensure that Iranian banks cannot abuse the international banking system to support ``proliferation and terrorism.''

Iran with a nuclear weapon ``would be incredibly dangerous for world peace,'' Bush said yesterday following the Slovenia talks. ``They can either face isolation or they can have a better relationship with all of us.''

Bank Assets

EU and U.S. leaders talked about freezing Iranian bank assets, though the measures must be agreed on by foreign ministers of the 27-nation bloc, according to EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner, who was at the Slovenia meeting.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana will visit Tehran at the weekend to present the government there with a new package of incentives to persuade it to halt uranium enrichment. The trip will be the latest step in three years of negotiations with Iran, adding momentum to Western efforts to prevent the Islamic cleric- run regime from building nuclear weapons.

Earlier this week, Iranian Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar warned there would be a ``painful response'' to any attack on his country by Israel, the Associated Press reported, citing the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency.

Najjar was responding to comments by Israeli Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz, who said in an interview published by the Yediot Ahronot newspaper that Israel will have to attack if Iran continues with its nuclear-development program.

The comments by Mofaz, a possible contender for the post of prime minister, were denounced as ``foolish'' by Najjar.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ladane Nasseri in Tehran at lnasseri@bloomberg.net .
Last Updated: June 11, 2008 10:11 EDT

Bloomberg.com: News

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