Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Iran

Israel's Peres Tells Ahmadinejad To 'Cool Off'

Iranian President Ahmadinejad (file photo) (epa)

14 December 2005 -- Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Shimon Peres today said that Iran's president should "go to Alaska to cool off a little bit" after his latest anti-Jewish and anti-Israeli remarks.

TEXT SIZE - +

December 14, 2005

Earlier on 14 December, Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad described the Holocaust as a "myth." He said that even if the Holocaust did happen, Israel should be moved from the Middle East. "If you committed such a crime, then it would be good if you gave a piece of your own soil, a piece of soil in Europe, the United States, Canada or Alaska to [the Jews] so that they can create a country for themselves," Ahmadinejad said.

Ahmadinejad's remarks drew swift condemnation from Israel, Germany, the European Union, and the United States.

This is the latest in a series of highly controversial remarks by Ahmadinejad about the Israel and the Jews. Previously, he called for Israel to be "wiped off the map" and described it as a "tumor."

(AP/AFP/Reuters)

Iranian Anti-Zionism

President Ahmadinejad visiting the tomb of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in October (Fars)

READ

Each year in Iran, the last Friday of Ramadan is celebrated as Qods (Jerusalem) Day, officially a day for expressing solidarity with the Palestinian people.
"I have been notifying the Muslims of the danger posed by the usurper Israel," Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, father of Iran's Islamic Revolution, said in an August 1979 announcement. "I ask all the Muslims of the world and the Muslim governments to join together to sever the hand of this usurper and its supporters...and, through a ceremony demonstrating the solidarity of Muslims worldwide, announce their support for the legitimate rights of the Muslim people..." (more)

Iranian President Says Light Surrounded Him During UN Speech

INTERVIEW: On December 22, 2005, RFE/RL's Radio Farda spoke with FRED ZEIDMAN, director of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. Zeidman commented on Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad's anti-Israeli comments.

LISTEN

Hear the complete interview (about nine minutes):
Real Audio Windows Media

ARCHIVE: For an archive of RFE/RL's coverage of Iran, click here.

Iran has stepped up its pressure on activists using the Internet

Iranian Activists, Journalists Receive Threatening E-mails

A number of Iranian activists and journalists based inside and outside the country have told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda they have been threatened in anonymous e-mails. More

A vendor in the central Bosnian town of Zenica sells heart-shaped cushions with proclamations of love for 1 euro each.

Love It (Or Hate It), It's Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day, the Western holiday celebrating love, has become a global phenomenon over the past two decades. The fall of communism and the emergence of the Internet have helped February 14 become something of an unofficial international day of romance. However, not all the passions the holiday stirs are related to love. While some countries have openly embraced the holiday, others are attempting to ban it or replace it with local customs. More

Many Iranians have been claiming that their access to social networks and Internet-based e-mail sites has been blocked in recent days.

Iran Tightens Internet Control

Iranians are reporting that their access to Facebook and Internet-based e-mail sites like Gmail has been blocked, without any explanation from the government. Not even the strongest antifiltering programs have penetrated the firewall, they say. Some speculate the move is related to Iran's plan to launch a national internet, which might sever Iranians' ability to access the World Wide Web. More