Iranian Leader's Christmas Message Prompts Outcry

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the President of Iran, delivered Channel 4's alternative Christmas address yesterday, sending a message of "happiness, prosperity, peace and brotherhood for humanity" which immediately ignited a furious row.

The speech by Mr Ahmadinejad, whose nuclear ambitions and views on Israel and homosexuality have strained relations between Iran and the West, was moderate, with none of the harsh rhetoric for which he has gained notoriety. God, he said, had created "every human being with the ability to reach the heights of perfection". He also urged Muslims and Christians to work together towards a world of "love, brotherhood and justice".

Perhaps mindful of its controversial choice of speaker, Channel 4 did not broadcast the message at 3pm to coincide with the Queen's speech on BBC and ITV, as it has done every year since 1993. Instead, the programme was screened at 7.15pm. However, that did not prevent a backlash which started even before the broadcast. The human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell had urged Channel 4 to "pull the plug on this criminal despot, who ranks with Robert Mugabe, Omar al-Bashir of Sudan and the Burmese military junta as one of the world's most bloody tyrants".

Speaking in Farsi with English subtitles, Mr Ahmadinejad sent his congratulations to "the followers of Abrahamic faiths, especially the followers of Jesus Christ, and the people of Britain". He said the world's ills had come about through nations failing to follow the teachings of the Prophets, including Jesus. He also made a thinly-veiled attack on the US, claiming Christ would have been against "bullying, ill-tempered and expansionist powers" and would have opposed "warmongers, occupiers, terrorists and bullies the world over".

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office rebuked Channel 4 for giving a platform to the President, who has called the Holocaust "a myth", saying it would cause international offence. A spokeswoman said: "President Ahmadinejad has during his time in office made a series of appalling anti-Semitic statements. The British media are rightly free to make their own editorial choices, but this invitation will cause offence and bemusement not just at home but amongst friendly countries abroad."

Israel called the message a "sick and twisted irony". Ron Prosor, the Israeli ambassador to Britain, said: "In Iran, converts to Christianity face the death penalty."

Read more from the Independent.

Comments

[Deparis]

Ohhbama...­!!! Anyone noticed that Iranian girl on the personals' ad? I ma get me somethin from them IranianPersonals.com!!!

[AliMB]

persian women are very beautiful.­.. a good friend of mine is half persian, and she is definitely a head-turne­r... i remember once i was at an airport and there was a group of iranian women (their nationalities were confirmed to me) walking around the duty free-shop.­. they all had the typical head coverings and conservative dress, but you saw their faces and they were quite lovely... naturally, they were looking trying out the facial cosmetic products mascara, eyeliner, etc.

[xxnounxx]

And your iranian too..
i once had a half iranian friend and she was a head turner..lo­oooool
your sarounded by them..its so weird,one can tell the westerners from the iranians in this topic..as all you shah lovers,speak the same..you have a manual that you give out freely.and memorise..­and another thing 90% of the iranian refugees claim they are related to the shah...loo­ol

[Deparis]

I get the message, everything coming from the West is good and anything coming from elsewhere is bad. You know, like we crying foul because Muslims take offense at a bunch of racist provocateurs caricaturing their most sacred Prophet. How dare they oppose our freedom of speech and expression!!! How dare we give Mahmood Ahmadinejad airwaves to exercise his freedom of speech!!!

Amazing how we cannot see the beam before our own eyes or first sweep in front of our own door.

[HARVIN]

Kinda' like Rick Warren at P.T. Obarnum's inaugurati­on.The Iranian leader has a little thing called credibility though.Pas­tor Rick is simply another in a long line of snake oil salesmen.

[HyperInfluential]

Dude, PT Obarnum? If you stretch any farther you might snap in half!

[eden4barack08]

ROFL.

[mudshark12]

Ahmadinejad, like most people from that part of the world has a very twisted mind and is NOT above lying when it suits his purposes. I equate this with an untrustworthy someone patting you on the back and using flattery to give a false sense of security. All the time he was feeling for the "soft spot" to put the knife in later. I think we need to be on our guard as "later" is approaching.

[northstar11]

newsflash for you --the american public was also lied to with regard to the iraq war. lying is not endemic to "that part of the world"

[newworldman777]

Mentally mold others to fit your stereotypical image much? I hate to be the one to burst your bubble, but many in "that part of the world" are very trustworthy and honorable people. They just happen to be living under strict authoritarian rule -- a situation that is beyond their control. Additionally, Israel is in "that part of the world." Are you lumping the Israelis -- America's "staunchest Middle Eastern ally" -- into that stereotypical category?

You want to talk about someone who lies to suit his purpose? One need to look no further than America's own shores, to Washington, D.C.. George Bush and his minions have lied so much to the American people to suit their twisted neocon needs, that Ahmadinejad pales in comparison.

[AliMB]

is your argument that George W. Bush is worse than Ahamdinejad? its an honest question..­.

[whoajack]

WOW! How many people "From that part of the world" do you know? And here's your pot, for calling the kettle black. America, land of fake hair, fake boobs, fake nails, fake butts, fake pecs, fake transcripts, fake WMD's, Fake McMansion homes in foreclosure, Fake Hummer owners with their cars repossessed, predatory lenders, Bernie Madoff, Lehman Bros, AIG, Merrill Lynch, etc.... WOW, is all I can say to this. Racist much?

Now I'm going back to my tanning bed!

[eden4barack08]

WOW! What an ignorant comment.

[Wozzeck]

No matter what Ahmadinejad says the MSM will invariably use the occasion to repeat the neocons' talking points.

We are to consider him the new Hitler because the neocons and their media sympathizers say he is. Never mind that he doesn't control the military or Iran's foreign policy, or that Iran hasn't invaded any country.

We are constantly told that Iran's nuclear power program is a secret weapons program because the neocons and their media sympathizers say it is. Never mind that it is in compliance with the NPT, while Israel has never signed the treaty.

We are constantly told that he wants to wipe Israel off the map. Even though he didn't say any such thing.

Just as the MSM prepared the American public for the Iraq disaster, it is at it again preparing us to fight a proxy war against Iran.

[bioluminescence]

Well said.

[WorkingClass]

Hear Hear

[piul05]

Exactly.

[whoajack]

Bingo!

[Hirnlego]

Just a reminder..­.

Meet 'The Decider' of Tehran. It's Not the Hothead You Expect...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/07/AR2007120701614.html

[Whinger]

Nuclear threat in one hand peace in the other, what a twisted little man!

[Deparis]

That sounds like Georgie Dubya Boosh... right? Well, never mind!

[northstar11]

which country in the middle east has nukes?
how can you be a nuclear threat if you dont have nukes?/
a little propagandist are we??

[whoajack]

Um, sounds pretty American to me...... IDK

[eden4barack08]

"Twisted little man"? Would that be Bush or Cheney?

[devanate]

sending a message of "happiness, prosperity, peace and brotherhood for humanity" which immediately ignited a furious row

[paixa3]

Strange is it not? There must be a tremendous number of hateful people around the world these days.

[xxnounxx]

well his message which i beleive is genuine,was condemed in the west..coz i think they wanted to say it first .
what ahmedi nejad said was lovely ,so far i have not seen the tyrant in him,which he is accused of,or compared to robert mugabe..lo­ok at america all silent while robert mugabe is murdering innocent people daily.

[eden4barack08]

Boy are you right! The Mugabe silence is just deafening.

[Dunworkin]

It seems to me at one time or another we have been friends or supported most of the countries in the middle east which has led to no good out come,we befriend them when they are in trouble ,give them money knowing they will never pay it back,so why not try something different this time ,pull all of our troops and contractors and civilians out of all middle east countries and let them kill each other ,sooner or later the strongerest will surive and we will deal with that one,i don't believe it will take them long to settle their differences.

[Youhavegottobekiddingme]

That makes way too much sense.

Just saying.

[isthatso]

Good thought but how can we get out of there? We are there for the oil and we are not leaving until we have every last drop, then the U.S. won't care what happens over there.

[windypaperboy]

Has anyone ever hear about freedom of speech in the UK?

[AkiraBergman]

The colonialists have run out of puff. Respectable intellectuals have deserted them and they are left with ignorant and shallow advisers who are also small time profit seekers just like their employers. As a good indicator they are running from one blunder to the next.

Turks have a saying; "Fish stinks from the head".

[mtflyer]

The British have never gotten over losing their empire after WWII and would do just about anything to get some of it back. Their history of foreign policy is as shady as our own in manipulating the peoples of other lands to their economic needs. We are involved in the third war for independence right now-to free ourselves from British economic influence. When you realize that interest rates have been influenced by them (the Libor rate) especially when people got sucked into adjustable rate mortgages and of course the rates on credit cards, it is very evident. Check out the info sheet you got with your credit cards. Nothing would please them more than to see the world economic system collapse so that they can pick up the pieces. Does this sound familiar in light of the Repuglican reluctance to help the auto companies?

[charlietuna11]

why the outrage, what am i missing. i know we in america,especially those right of center are perfect i know we have never invaded another country. there are reports america over threw the democracy of iran but i believe that to be a lie. an even bigger lie has america dropping an atomic bomb on strictly civilian populations in japan, again most likely a lie . if a former enemy attemps to say peaceful greetings , we need to vet the speech with our nations most prominate red necks. now i get it..

[Garvagh]

Iran has a large Jewish community, and anti-Zionist statements by Ahmadinejad are not "anti-Semitic". Iran wants an end to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Golan Heights. Many Israelis want an end to the occupation of the West Bank.

[eden4barack08]

Correct, but it's not in the warmonger west's best interest to spread some truths.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngttxIzXRsE&feature=channel

[SkatEye]

Let him speak an let us judge for ourselves. You are not as smart as you thing to try to prevent me from making my own judgement.
I read some of the critics comment, mostly those MPs in UK, very incoherent. One time they are talking about Israel and the other, gay... they so narrow in their views of the world. Also let us be the judge. We have a brain of our own. Don't try to tell me what's good for me.
It seems like you are so scared that something might come out that you can't control. Despotes.

[nonbeliever]

How dare he send a message of peace? You must have missed the George Bush crap and peace message. Here we are outraged over a speech and mostly uncaring about the horror we have unleshed on Iraq and our own soldiers. To say we are a nation of 12 year olds is to give us too much credit.

[Opinionater]

You are so quick to attack all Americans. The story happened in the United Kingdom.

[persianadvocate]

Not once was Israel mentioned in the message.

But since Zionists have unleashed their media machinery and intruded into the conversation, per the above, it should be known that in Israel, it is well-documented non-Jews have the same rights blacks did in Apartheid Africa and segregated America.

Israel has the notorious record of ignoring the most resolutions against it in UN history. They continue, as state policy, to systematically starve and encamp Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. There is no excuse for this, not even the rockets that barrage Sderot, causing minimal damage, if that.

There is a strong Zionist/Israeli movement to disparage Iran and Iranians. The cultural war is also evident. How many times have they tried to erase the rightful title of the the "Persian Gulf"? What about depicting the proud and highly established Persian culture as a bunch of barbarians in 300?

Enough is enough. Look at yourself Israel, you're in danger of being kicked out of the UN by a Nobel Laureate. You have turned away UN Human Rights inspector after inspector based on shallow perceptions of bias. People compare your governments' practices to Hitler's because they are, in fact, similar. There is a state-sponsored and evidenced movement to ethnically cleanse the lands of non-Jews. Even your acting PM, Livni, made this assertion clear recently.

Don't even get me started with your circumvention of international law and "secret" proliferat­ion...