(Pakuranga) The crap
has hit the fan after a video which was posted online by the IslamicAhlulbayt Foundation of New Zealand
Which showed Iranian diplomat Hormoz Ghahremani speaking to the mosque the following:
"Israel was trying to "deceive the world" by pretending to be an advocate of peace when in fact it was fuelling terrorism and extremism in the Middle East to divert attention from the Palestine issue."
This was followed by visiting Iranian cleric, Hojatoleslam
Shafie, who stated that Israel:
"Hides behind the fake phenomenon" of the Holocaust and that it was a conspiracy to infiltrate Islamic countries. Quds Day was established to deal a powerful punch to the mouth of the cancerous tumour known as evil Israel," and cited Imam Khomeini as saying that "if every Muslim were to spit in the face of Israel, Israel would drown". The annihilation of the "Zionist regime" had begun, and Israel will not last for another 25 years."
Community elder Sayed Taghi Derhami, a Mt Albert accountant,
told attendees at the event that :
"Israel was a "cancerous gland" that had to be "surgically removed".
When approached by the media Ghahremani said his speech was
supposed to be private and he was upset it had been put on the internet.:
"It was something private, a small gathering. I was there to reflect the position of the Iranian Government.We do not recognise the Israeli Government, that's not a secret. But we are not against their existence."
He agreed the speech could be seen as inflammatory, but it
had to be taken in the context of the event at which it was given. He spoke at
a gathering to mark the annual Quds Day, initiated by Iran in the 1970s to
support Palestinians and oppose Zionism. When asked if such inflammatory speeches could fuel
radicalism in the Muslim community, Ghahremani said:
"If it's spoken in public places yeah, you're right. But it was a small, private gathering that happens once a year. This year they make a mistake to shoot a film, to put it on YouTube."
Complaints have been laid with the Human Rights Commission
and New Zealand's Foreign Minister.
