It's Almost Supernatural

Now is the time to squeeze Iran

For all the things that made Bill Clinton’s presidency memorable, his insightful campaign slogan ‘it’s the economy stupid’ had somewhat faded into insignificance until the recent American sub-mortgage crisis. The economy is now once again front and centre in this year’s US election. If Barak Obama is in fact to win on Tuesday night, as the polls suggest, market crash and liquidity freeze will certainly have a lot to do with it. But financial hard times are not only key to momentous internal political change in democracies; they have also shown themselves to be tenacious in disposing of authoritarian regimes. Over the next few months, the Islamic Republic of Iran will hopefully provide us with our latest case study.

Only a few months ago the strategic situation in the Middle East from an Israeli, Western and moderate Arab perspective looked horrible. Awash with petrodollar as a result of record high oil prices, the Iranian regime looked unstoppable from acquiring nuclear weapon and fomenting chaos through its proxies, Hezbollah and Hamas. With military action seeming politically unfeasible and technically problematic, many had begun to whisper about just having to get use to living with a nuclear Iran. But all of this has now changed. Fears of a global slowdown have caused oil prices to collapse from over $140 a barrel to below $70. If this fall is sustained, it could as much as halve the Iranian regime’s fiscal revenue and places the country at risk for a serious budget crisis. Given the already poor state of the economy with rising inflation and high unemployment, Iran has few benign macro-economic options.

Iran is now showing symptoms of what economists refer to as the Dutch Diseases, the almost counter intuitive situation where countries that experience commodity export booms usually end up in serious financial trouble. Given the Iranian regime’s shaky internal political position and its messianic belief that oil prices would continue to rise until the Twelfth Imam returns, they have spent almost all their additional oil revenue in the form of cash handouts and price subsidies to buy the support of their people. But just throwing money at the people ala Evita Peron, as we saw in Argentina, does not create economic growth. It only fuels inflation.

Moreover their arrogant disdain for Western advice has led them to reject perhaps the most important macro-economic policy of the last few decades, an independent central bank. Under Ahmadinejad’s control the Iranian printing press has been working overtime (with money growth in the region of 40% per annum) to keep interest rates low and consumers and businesses happy. But this temporarily effective political strategy has disastrous economic consequences. Coupled with the excessive government spending, it has unleashed the dragon of stagflation (high inflation and low growth) on the Iranian people. Inflation climbed last month to 27 percent while unemployment continues to remains high at high at 11 percent.

Given the structure of the economy, this is a self perpetuating financial collapse. As inflation rises the government of Iran will be forced to spend more and more money, money they no longer have, to maintain the various price subsidies they offer. With falling oil revenues they will either have to borrow or print more money to fund this additional expenditure. The latter will serve to further boast inflation and cause this downward economic spiral to continue over and over again.

So what should the Iranians do to stop their march towards economic ruin? Conventional economic advice would be to cut spending, stop printing money and give the central bank independence. But Ahmadinejad does not seem prepared to listen. In the last 3 years he has fired 3 central bankers for suggesting just such a policy. Moreover, he faces an election in the near future and cannot afford politically to cut back on handouts to the people. By all accounts he is already in a precarious position in the polls. So in fact, expect government spending to increase, at least in the short term.

Natan Sharansky has for the last few years been talking up an imminent internal Iranian revolution. When he visited South Africa a couple of years ago, he told me that from what he has read and heard the Iranian people remind him of Russians in the late 1980’s just before the fall of the Berlin wall. “Almost everyone is a ‘double-thinker’ there”, he told me emphatically. He was predicting regime change within a year. Of course it did not materialize: not because I believe Sharansky’s analysis was wrong but because he failed to foresee the oil price boom that has allowed Ahmadinejad to maintain stability by buying off political support. This has now come to an end. In fact, the current reality in Iran actually now much more closely mirrors the USSR. The fall of the Soviet too was ultimately sparked by falling oil prices and the resulting economic challenges that this wrought.

Clearly now is the time for those who wish to stop Iran acquiring a nuclear bomb and terrorizing the region to act. Simple measures like limiting the Iranians access to foreign finance would force the regime to fund its expenditure through printing more money, seriously accelerating the economic collapse that is under way. Of course large scale sanction that prevented countries from buying Iranian exports would really cripple them economically but given that 80% of their exports are oil, this is not seen as economically viable for the rest of the world. A public disinvestment campaign would also help.

On a political level, now is not the time for meetings between Western leaders and the Iranian regime. Quite the opposite. We need to make it clear that this government is not legitimate. Financial and moral support for dissident groups should be urgently augmented. The West and moderate Muslim states must publicly declare that they will do whatever they can to stand by the Iranian people against their tyrannical government.

The financial crisis has resulted in the hope that change is possible here in America. But this applies equally to our enemies as well. If Obama would only formulate a foreign policy position on the same basis as he does his domestic political strategy then this could really be the moment when the rise of Islamic fundamentalism begins to slow and our planet begins to heal.

If they treat their own like this...

Kudos to the Independent Group for yesterday's detailed report on the 8 Iranian woman and 1 man sentenced to death by public stoning for adultery.

As Natan Sharansky says, if they treat their own people this way, how do you expect them to treat their neighbours? Sadly South Africa continues to provide Iran with diplomatic support, edging them towards full blown nuclear capability.

The Iranian Magician and the Curse of Silence

I hate magic shows. I could never understand why people pay good money to be fooled. Last week I was dragged by friends to see a ‘world famous’ illusionist (an adult pseudonym for a magician). And although his tricks were amazing, he had nothing on Iran’s foreign minister at the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit yesterday in Malaysia. My magician was able to make a ring disappear; David Blaine once made the Wall of China fade away but the Iranian foreign minister with his slight of the tongue made the entire Jewish state vanish.

In an interview with Associated Press in response to a question about Israel’s call for sanctions against the Islamic republic, the Iranian foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki responded ‘What country is this? There is no such country.’

And what was the response? Silent amazement. I know the feeling. At my illusionist show too the audience was stunned into disbelief. But there were the odd few who managed to muster the courage to mutter ‘you know this is all a trick: it can’t be real.’ Unfortunately Israel has heard no such muttering from its NAM friends. The South African government has once again remained shamefully silent.

This diplomatic black magic does pose an interesting question. Is it worse to deny someone’s right to exist or deny their very existence at all? I have concluded that the latter is more dangerous. Previously with his ‘wipe Israel off the map’ threat the Iranian president was only an aspiring mass murderer. With this comment it’s clear to everyone that his government is now also delusional.

Weapons of mass destruction in the hands a wannabe killer are only dangerous to his intended victims. Weapons of mass destruction in the hands of a genocidal maniac however present a problem for everyone. Those in the anti-war camp who are now arguing that we can live peacefully with a nuclear Iran just as we did with a nuclear Soviet Union are as delusional as the government of the Islamic republic. The logic of Mutually Assured Destruction (M.A.D.) does not hold for mad Mullahs.

All those countries who believe in freedom and human rights especially South Africa need to make it clear to Iran that its homicidal desires will not be tolerated. Last time when they came for the Jews much of the world said and did nothing. Let’s hope that this time it will be different.

South Africa in lock step with the Islamic Republic

On Friday in one of those rare and remarkable turn of events, a mainstream South African newspaper (the Star) published an article critical of president Mbeki’s pro-Iranian foreign policy. George Orwell once wrote that ‘at a time of universal deceit – telling the truth is a revolutionary act.’ In the context of our mainstream media’s habitual anti-Western line, Peter Fabricius’ (a respected South African foreign affairs columnist) article entitled ‘Mbeki misguidedly climbs into bed with Iran’ comes pretty close to such an act.

South Africa’s seeming support for Iran in its nuclear stand off with the West stems from Mbeki’s almost neurotic fear of the developing world’s favorite boogieman — neo-Western imperialism. Fabricius argues that South Africa’s strong endorsement of Iran’s right to enrich uranium is based on the fear that Western powers may try to prevent South Africa, as they are currently doing to Iran, from enriching uranium.

South Africa itself has not enriched uranium since the late 1990s. It became more economical to import uranium fuel for our only nuclear power station at Koeberg. However South Africa is currently experimenting with pebble bed nuclear reactors to produce electricity. And if successful, we may need to produce our own nuclear fuel to supplies these reactors in the future.

Mbeki fears that the “racist” West is not really interested in preventing the proliferation of WMD but rather to deny the developing world nuclear technology. This is surely another neo-imperial trick to stifle African progress. Fabricius quotes Mbeki actually saying as much to dinner guests on his recent official visit to London.

You get these whispers that Iran constitutes a trial run, and if there is success in terms of prohibiting Iran to do the things that are permitted by the treaty (the Nuclear Non- Proliferation Treaty), that will then be extended to all other countries. So that you then not only have a small club of nuclear weapon states, but then you also have a small club of countries that can do anything at all in terms of developing nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. So the Iran thing is not unique in itself, but is a pacesetter for what might happen in the future.

The absurdity of this logic is actually laughable. But similar sentiments were expressed by senior minister in our government before the Iraq war. There was a sense that South Africa may be next on America hit list. What reason could there possibly be for America and its Western allies to invade South Africa or deny us the right to use peaceful nuclear technology? I mean we don’t even have oil!

As Fabricius explains

Suspicion flows from Mbeki’s ideological insistence on seeing the world fundamentally as a dichotomy between the developed world and the developing world and lumping South Africa indiscriminately with the latter.

Mbeki and his colleagues are so blinded by their anti-Western dogma that they fail to see the extensive differences between rogue states like Iran and Iraq and democratic South Africa. They fail to see that the Bush administrations foreign policy is not guided by rapacious colonial greed but by a desire to prevent WMD proliferation and the spread of global terrorism. Fabricius makes the point that the West is

concerned about Iran building nuclear weapons not because it is a developing country but because they believe Iran supports international terrorism and has threatened to wipe Israel off the map. By contrast the West remains unperturbed and even supportive of another developing country India not only enriching uranium but also frankly using it to make nuclear weapons. That’s because it trusts India not to use its nuclear weapons offensively.

The irony of the whole situation is that America’s neo-con administration and the ANC actually have strong mutual interests. Both are committed to the spread of freedom in the developing world. South Africa is one of the few examples of developing countries that have successfully embraced democracy. And while our current political system is not perfect, we certainly do have a lot to teach others. South Africa should be at the forefront of providing assistance to Iraqi’s fledgling democracy. However our government because of its irrational anti-Western worldview has mistakenly chosen to be in lock step with Iran’s totalitarian theocracy.

More IAS coverage on the murky relationship between SA and Iran:

Pahad's Past Tense
JPOST: SA provides diplomatic cover for Iran
SA and Iran in close consultations 
US seeking SA help over Iran
SA in new talks with Iran
SA side-steps calls by Iran to annihilate Israel
SA signs memorandum of understanding on bilateral communication with Iran

Pahad's Past Tense

The Star last week reported that South African Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad warned against referring Iran to the UN Security Council adding that South Africa wants the IAEA alone to deal with Iran.

South Africa is awaiting clarification from Iran on two issues: the first concerns the source of contaminated nuclear material that the IAEA found in Iran and the second concerns the evidence of Irans use of centrifuges - devices used to enrich Uranium.

Pahad says that the above evidence has led some countries to believe that Iran was preparing to build nuclear weapons. But Pahad says that this evidence only proves that Iran had been preparing to build nuclear weapons in the past!

When questioned on South Africa's silence following Iran's calls to wipe Israel off the map Pahad said that Iran had never recognised the state of Israel and that the Iranian president had not said that Israel should be destroyed with nuclear weapons. He added "these statements were not helpful at this stage."

Umm...Deputy Minister...what happened to "it was an administrative oversight"?

Nuclear Nightmare

Will South Africa ever take a moral stand and publicly condemn vitriolic statements made by Iran and Hamas? I doubt it.

Ahmadinejad: Israel is a rotten, dried tree, that will be annihilated by one storm
Mashal: We'll never recognise Israel. The only solution is Jihad.

The Telegraph writes that Ahmadinejad's reference to the "one storm" could be seen as code for nuclear armageddon.

When you are threatened with annihilation you have to ensure that if you err, you err on the side of the hawks. Leaders are responsible for what they say. And when threats reach these alarming levels words can bring their people as much harm as actions can. Threatening another nation with destruction can trigger the same ramifications as firing the first missiles can.

The err on the side of the hawks principle applies even more when the man making these threats evinces a dangerous dimension of religious messianism.

In November last year Ahamdinejad described how one of his Iranian colleagues claimed that he saw a glow of light surrounding the presidents head as he addressed world leaders at the UN. He spoke of how the world leaders were entranced by the hand of God as he spoke.

Furthermore, Ahmadinejad is devoted to the Hidden Imam, the Messiah-like figure of Shia Islam. It is widely believed that Ahmadinejad's government has signed a pledge to work for the return of the Hidden Imam, known as the Twelth Mahdi among Iran's dominant Shia sect.

This Twelth Mahdi apparently went into hiding at the age of five - and of course, s/he will return one day. His return however will be preceded by utter chaos, war, and bloodshed. Ahmadinejad believes that these events are close at hand and can be influenced by individuals.

It's a clear case of the self fulfilled prophecy. If you believe there will be chaos before the Mahdi returns then all you need to do is take it upon yourself to create that chaos.

How should Israel and her friends react? Consider your child at school. Imagine he schools in an area known for yobbish children where school shootings have previously occurred. Imagine that a bully at the school threatens to kill your child. Now imagine that the child carries a gun to school and the teachers allow it. Would you sit back and watch the events unfold hoping that everything will just be okay?

Cartoon by Cox & Forkum Editorial Cartoons.

Update

Local cartoonist Zapiro doesn't seem to understand the serious reality of a messimanical regime that threatens to annihilate other nations coupled with their so-far-succesful attempts at going nuclear.

See the discussion over this dreadful Zapiro cartoon at Fodder.  

I think it's pretty darn childish to pretend that there is absolutely zero cause for concern over Iran.

If they are eventually targetted then it will be because of the aggressive rhetoric of their leaders - not because George W Bush is a war hungry ignoramus.

But this malformed view on global politics is nothing new to regular Zapiro readers. When Israel voted for Sharon he mocked them with this cartoon, claiming that they were voting for war. When the Palestinians voted for Hamas he was...silent. But what do you expect from a cartoonist who thinks nothing of comparing Israelis to Nazis? (Granted he did later express regret at the Nazi cartoon. But it only proves that he is often inclined to act on impulse rather than thought.)

Classical ‘Christian’ anti-Semitism and the Islamic Republic

Much attention, in both the local and international media, has been given to Iran’s modern manifestations of anti-Semitism. Their president’s call for the political extermination of the Jewish State is perhaps the best known example. The pervasive Holocaust denial that infects Iran’s political discourse is another widely published case in point.

While I personally believe that these new types of anti-Semitism are as vile as the classical ‘Christian’ variety, many people particularly of the leftwing persuasion do not share this view. So as to avoid this debate (for the time being), I have decided to focus this article on the classical anti-Semitism (direct explicitly at Jews not Zionists) that has become so popular of late in the Islamic Republic. Unfortunately this type of universally condemned racism has not been reported much in the mainstream media.

Many Iranian apologists have for a long time argued that the evil regime in Teheran is not anti-Semitic only anti-Zionist. The following extracts from remarks and articles by influential people in Iranian society totally disprove this claim.

Jews as rodents

On February 19, 2006, Iran's Channel 4 covered a film seminar that included a lecture by Professor Hasan Bolkhari. Professor Bolkhari is a Cultural Advisor to the Iranian Education Ministry and a member of the Film Council of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB). In this lecture the learned professor argued that the cartoon Tom and Jerry was a Jewish plot to improve the image of rodents, because Jews are ‘dirty mice’.

If you study European history, you will see who was the main power in hoarding money and wealth, in the 19th century. In most cases, it is the Jews. Perhaps that was one of the reasons which caused Hitler to begin the anti-Semitic trend … The Jews were degraded and termed 'dirty mice.' Tom and Jerry was made in order to change the Europeans' perception of mice. It should be noted that mice are very cunning...and dirty. No ethnic group or people operate in such a clandestine manner as the Jews. Read the history of the Jews in Europe. This ultimately led to Hitler's hatred and resentment.

He goes on further to explain his thesis as such:

Tom and Jerry was made in order to display the exact opposite image. The mouse is very clever and smart. Everything he does is so cute. He kicks the poor cat's ass. Yet this cruelty does not make you despise the mouse. He looks so nice, and he is so clever... This is exactly why some say it was meant to erase this image of mice from the minds of European children, and to show that the mouse is not dirty and has these traits. Unfortunately, we have many such cases in Hollywood shows.

What the Professor is saying is that Jews are still like dirty rodents- that has not chanced. Unfortunately, they have managed to change the image of a rodent so as not to look so dirty in European eyes. It’s the most despicable example of classic anti-Semitism around.

Jewish Rabbi’s bake with the blood of non-Jewish children

A TV discussion with Iranian political analysts Dr. Hasan Hanizadeh and Dr. Ali-Reza Akbari was aired on Jaam-e Jam 2 TV on December 20, 2005. Both are renowned Iranian journalists and intellectuals. The discussion began with the subject of the denial of the existence of crematoria at Auschwitz and moved on to explain in detail how Jewish rabbis in Europe killed non-Jewish children and used their blood for the Passover rituals.

Here are some extracts:

‘Unfortunately, the West has forgotten two horrendous incidents, carried out by the Jews in 19th-century Europe - in Paris and London, to be precise. In 1883, about 150 French children were murdered in a horrible way in the suburbs of Paris, before the Jewish Passover holiday. Later research showed that the Jews had killed them and taken their blood. This event caused riots in Paris back then, and the French government found itself under pressure.’ A similar incident took place in London, when many English children were killed by Jewish rabbis. These two incidents still haunt the minds and souls of the Europeans, but due to the growing influence of the Zionist lobby in Europe - or to be precise, the influence of the Jews - these two incidents are, unfortunately, never mentioned.’

Could you possibly get more classically anti-Semitic than that? Blood libels as the subject of historic works. One would not have thought it possible in the 21 century.

Jews the first Nazis

A televised discussion on the Holocaust was aired on Iran's Channel 2 on January 5, 2006. The discussion panel featured Iqbal Siddiqu, co-founder of the Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought and editor-in-chief of its magazine Crescent International, and political analysts Dr. Majid Goudarzi and Dr. Majid Safataj. The discussion begins by highlighting ancient Jewish ‘atrocities’ and then denigrates into Holocaust denial.

The discussion begins as follows:

‘In ancient, pre-Islamic times, there were strange disputes between the Jews and the Christians. The Jews believed that the Messiah had not come and would not come. Apparently, it was for them to decide when the Messiah would come and who he would be. When Jesus appeared, many people became followers of this great prophet. The king of Yemen at that time, who was probably a Jew - as can be seen in some sources - said to [the Christians]: "You have two options - either you convert [to Judaism] and renounce your Christianity, or else we will burn you.” They prepared a great pit of fire, and burned those Christians who refused to renounce the pure religion of Jesus. This case of burning people, of burning believers, has become engraved in the Jewish consciousness. Later they exploited this issue, and said that in World War II - between 1942 and 1945 - the Germans did this to them. They failed to mention that historic event, and the fact that they themselves had done the same to the Christians.’

What the ‘respected’ intellectuals are saying is that Jews are the real Nazi. Beware of them they burn true believes. Incitement to violence if ever I hear it.

These chilling examples of classic anti-Semitism are unfortunately common place is the political discourse of the Islamic Republic. What’s the big deal, you might argue, these types of statements are common through out the Muslim and Arab world.

Well I will tell you the problem. There are 30 000 Jews living in Iran. It is only a matter of time before these despicable words become despicable actions. Israel has an army to defend its Jewish population from Iranian aggression but what of the Iranian Jews? Who will save them?

JPost: South Africa Provides Diplomatic Cover for Iran

With the international community poised to make a critical decision in Vienna regarding whether to send the Iranian nuclear dossier to the United Nations Security Council, South Africa's behavior on the issue has raised eyebrows in a number of western capitals, including Jerusalem. South Africa was one of five countries, alongside Libya, Algeria, Indonesia and Belarus, which abstained when the International Atomic Energy Agency voted last month to report Iran to the Security Council. Only Cuba, Syria and Venezuela voted against. Western diplomatic officials said South African President Thabo Mbeki's government has come under a degree of "cajoling" in recent weeks from the US and European countries to stop giving Teheran diplomatic cover to continue its nuclear program. One western official said that over the last few months South Africa has been the most reticent, among non-Arab or Muslim players on the international stage, to join in international condemnations of Iran. The reasons given for this are varied, and include a South African sense of solidarity with the Iranians as a member of the "revolutionary club," support the ruling African National Congress received from Iran during the years when it fought apartheid, and strong bilateral trade relations.

Read the whole article here.

As I have said before, South Africa is trying to position itself in a strategic position between the US and Iran. If South Africa is perceived as having influence over Iran then it strengthens our position internationally (and will add weight to South African calls for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council).

But the utility of this strategy may be drying up.

The South Africans, according to diplomatic officials, maintain that they are one of the few countries with direct ties to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and to the country's supreme Islamic leadership. The officials said that South Africa is trying to use this status with the Iranian leadership as a way to upgrade its status as a major player on the world's stage. Some officials, however, believe that South Africa has already overplayed its hand, and that rather than upgrading its position, by voting with countries like Libya, Algeria, Belarus and Indonesia, it is placing itself in international company that it does not necessarily want to be associated with.

A while ago there were reports that South Africa was planning to supply Uranium to Iran. But Israel says that South Africa is behaving very responsibly.

Israeli and US officials deny that South Africa is supplying Iran with any nuclear material or know-how to help develop its program, with one Israeli official saying that South Africa has behaved "very responsibly" when it comes to its nuclear know-how and materials.

South Africa was also one of the only western countries who failed to condemn Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s calls to wipe Israel off the map. South Africa later put this down to an “administrative oversight.”

More IAS coverage on the murky relationship between SA and Iran:
SA and Iran in close consultations
US seeking SA help over Iran
SA in new talks with Iran
SA side-steps calls by Iran to annihilate Israel
SA signs memorandum of understanding on bilateral communication with Iran

The Islamic Republic’s Unknown Victims

While the international media and Western diplomats are focused on the threat of Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, the Islamic Republic’s daily repression of its tiny Jewish minority has gone unnoticed. The deterioration of Iran’s official political discourse from vicious anti-Zionism into frightening traditional anti-Semitism places the lives of Iran’s 30,000 Jews in grave danger. Their perilous situation will most certainly worsen as the international community increases the political pressure on Iran.

Under Iran’s Islamic Sharia law, Jews are classed as dhimmis. As such they are excluded from public office and armed service. Moreover, Jews may not give evidence in the Islamic courts resulting in them being denied access to justice. They are routinely arrested and placed in jail for years without trial or worse. At least 13 Jews have been executed in Iran since the Islamic revolution, most of them for either religious reasons or their alleged connection to Israel.

Their second class status is symbolically reinforced by the fact that Jews are forbidden to ride horses or camels lest they be higher than Muslims, they are forbidden to build synagogues taller than mosques or to construct houses grander than those of their Islamic neighbors.

Before the 1979 Islamic revolution, Jewish life flourished in Iran. There were, for example, some 20 Jewish schools functioning throughout the country. However, in recent years, most of these have been closed down. In the remaining schools, Jewish principals have been replaced by Muslims and the curriculum imposed on students is strictly Islamic. Saturday is no longer recognized by ‘Jewish schools’ as the Jewish Sabbath and Jewish pupils are compelled to attend school on that day in contravention of Jewish law. Although there are still three synagogues in Teheran, there is no rabbi and the Beth Din (Jewish Religious Authority) has been disbanded.

These remaining 30,000 descendents of Iran’s ancient Jewish community are virtual prisoners in the Islamic Republic. Jews who apply for a passport to travel abroad must do so in a special bureau and are immediately put under surveillance. Furthermore, the government does not allow all members of a family to travel abroad at the same time to prevent Jewish emigration. Those Jews found attempting to leave are severely punished. In May 1998, for example, Jewish businessman Ruhollah Kakhodah-Zadeh was hanged in prison without a public charge or legal proceeding, allegedly for assisting Jews to emigrate.

But perhaps more chilling than Iran’s systemic oppression of its Jewish citizens, is the homicidal anti-Semitic rhetoric of its leaders and official media. In the writing of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Khomaini, Jews are described as ‘unclean’ along with urine, pigs and dogs. Iran's official government-controlled media often publishes the notorious anti-Semitic forgery the Protocols of the Elders of Zion. Perhaps it is fitting that a state that is so Nazi like in its anti-Jewish propaganda has also become the greatest denier of the Nazi Holocaust.

Despite this dangerous environment the chairman of Iran's Jewish Council, Haroun Yashayaei, recently sent a letter to Iranian President Ahmadinejad harshly criticizing him for his anti-Semitic outbursts. In the letter Haroun Yashayaei writes ‘your remarks on the Holocaust have shocked the international community and caused fear in Iran's Jewish community’. Mr Yashayaei bravely declared that ‘the Holocaust was a fact of history and not a myth’ and accused the Iranian president of ‘ignorance and political prejudice’. In a country where criticism of the Islamic government is not tolerated, especially from Jews, these comments will certainly not be well received. I fear to imagine the terrible retribution the Islamic Republic will exact on its helpless Jewish minority for this courageous show of defiance.

Alert some local newspapers about these discriminatory and apartheid-like practices in Iran with letters to the Editor. I recommend the Sunday Sun ([email protected]) and the Sowetan ([email protected]).

Fatwa: Sharia Does Not Forbid Use of Nukes

Reformist Iranian Internet Daily: A New Fatwa States That Religious Law Does Not Forbid Use of Nuclear Weapons

"The spiritual leaders of the ultra-conservatives [in Iran] have accepted the use of nuclear weapons as lawful in the eyes of shari'a. Mohsen Gharavian, a disciple of [Ayatollah] Mesbah Yazdi [who is Iranian President Ahmadinejad's spiritual mentor], has spoken for the first time of using nuclear weapons as a counter-measure. He stated that 'in terms of shari'a, it all depends on the goal.'

MEMRI has the lowdown.

Fear not...Sharia only permits their use as a counter-measure. So we have nothing to worry about...

Actually my major concern is not that they would actually use their nukes. Rather I believe they would use the nukes as a blackmailing device allowing them to escalate their funding, training, and directing of terrorism with increasing impunity.