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In Iran, Anti-Semitic Outbursts Rise Under Ahmadinejad

At a ceremony marking the International Day against Drug Abuse in Tehran this week, Iranian vice president Mohammad Reza Rahimi delivered an unprecedented, public anti-Semitic tirade, writes Meir Javedanfar. The comments broke with the Islamic Republic's usual practice, which demonizes Zionists while purporting to respect the Jewish religion.
Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (R) speaks as Rabbi Moshe Ber Beck of Neturei Karta, a fringe Ultra-Orthodox movement within the anti-Zionist bloc, listens during a meeting in New York, September 24, 2008.     REUTERS/Brendan McDermid (UNITED STATES)

At a ceremony marking the International Day against Drug Abuse in Tehran earlier this week (June 26), Iranian vice president Mohammad Reza Rahimi delivered an unprecedented, public anti-Semitic tirade in front of local and international dignitaries.

Breaking the usual practice of the Islamic Republic — which demonizes Zionists while purporting to respect the Jewish religion — Rahimi blamed the spread of drugs on the teachings of the Talmud, an important  text that brings together centuries of discussions in Jewish academies explaining Judaism’s oral laws.

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