AFP, United Nations, Sept 23, 2009 – France on Wednesday led a walkout of a dozen delegations, including the United States, to protest a speech by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahamdinejad to the UN General Assembly.
’It is disappointing that Mr Ahamdinejad has once again chosen to espouse hateful, offensive and anti-Semitic rhetoric,’ Mark Kornblau, spokesman to the US mission to the United Nations, said in a statement.
Delegations from Argentina, Australia, Britain, Costa Rica, Denmark, France Germany, Hungary, Italy, New Zealand and the United States left the room as Ahamdinejad began to rail against Israel, a European source said.
Israel had called for a boycott of the speech, and was not present when the Iranian leader began his address. Canada had already said it would heed the boycott call.
In his address, Ahamdinejad again took aim at Israel but without mentioning the country or Jews by name, referring only to the ’Zionist regime.’
The firebrand leader, re-elected in disputed June elections, accused Israel of ’inhumane policies in Palestine.’
’How can the crimes of the occupiers against defenseless women and children… be supported unconditionally by certain governments?’ Ahamdinejad asked.
’And at the same time, the oppressed men and women be subject to genocide and heaviest economic blockade being denied their basic needs, food, water and medicine?’
Suggesting there was a Jewish conspiracy, Ahamdinejad added: ’It is no longer acceptable that a small minority would dominate the politics, economy and culture of major parts of the world by its complicated networks.’
And he accused Jews of seeking to ’establish a new form of slavery, and harm the reputation of other nations, even European nations and the US, to attain its racist ambitions.’
A French diplomat told AFP the Iranian leader’s speech was ’unacceptable,’ adding European delegations had co-ordinated in advance what action to take if they found parts of the address unpalatable.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said his government would boycott Ahamdinejad’s speech over his earlier ’disgraceful’ remarks denying the Holocaust.
In a clear reference to the United States, Ahamdinejad also attacked ’some who are several thousands of kilometers away from the Middle East’ who send troops for ’spreading war, bloodshed, aggression, terror and intimidation.’
But it was less provocative than some of his past diatribes notably steering clear of any mention of the Holocaust.
The Iranian leader said his country had ’gone through a glorious and fully-democratic election, opening a new chapter for our country in the march towards national progress.’
And he also laced his address with references to Islam, Allah and the role of religion.