International outcry at Iran’s threat to destroy Israel

Iran Focus and agencies: London, Oct. 27 – The international community reacted with swift condemnation of the comments Wednesday by Iran’s hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad threatening to “wipe Israel off the face of the earth”. Iran Focus and agencies

London, Oct. 27 – The international community reacted with swift condemnation of the comments Wednesday by Iran’s hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad threatening to “wipe Israel off the face of the earth”.

By day’s end, several European capitals along with the United States, Canada, and Israel had all denounced Ahmadinejad’s threat.

Paris summoned the Iranian ambassador in France to explain the hard-line President’s comments, while London and Madrid have said that they plan to do the same on Thursday.

Canada strongly condemned the Iranian president’s remarks, saying they were particularly worrying because of Tehran’s nuclear ambitions. “This is the 21st century. We cannot tolerate comments of such hatred, such anti-Semitism, such intolerance”, Canadian Foreign Minister Pierre Pettigrew told reporters.

“And these comments are all the more troubling (given) that we know of Iran’s nuclear ambitions. So I think it is very important that all countries do stand up together to make sure that we do not accept that Iran continues a nuclear program”.

Spain’s Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos has “expressed his rejection in the most emphatic terms and has decided to urgently call in the Iranian ambassador to ask him for an explanation” the Spanish foreign ministry said in a statement, adding that Iran’s ambassador to Madrid would be summoned to explain the remarks.

The United Kingdom Foreign Office will also summon Iran’s chargé d’affaires in London to protest against his president’s comments about destroying Israel. It described the Iranian President’s comments as “deeply disturbing and sickening”.

Iranian opposition leader Maryam Rajavi strongly condemned what she described as Ahmadinejad’s “incitement to war of religions and civilisations” and called his statement “repulsive and unacceptable”. She said Ahmadinejad’s comments on the destruction of the U.S. and Israel as “a goal that could be realised” showed once again that the Iranian regime posed a serious threat to regional and global peace and tranquillity.

Both France and Germany separately denounced the comments.

In Washington, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the remarks underscore the Bush administration’s concerns about Iran’s nuclear intentions.

Israel, meanwhile, called for the expulsion of the Islamic Republic from the United Nations. Making the call, Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Shimon Peres said the statement from Tehran went against the principles of the United Nations.

Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom expressed concern over Iran’s nuclear program and called for Tehran’s nuclear dossier to be referred to the UN Security Council.