Skip to main content
U.S. Edition
Search
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
WORLD

U.N. condemns Iran Holocaust remarks

story.iran.protest.presiden.jpg
Ahmadinejad at a previous anti-Israel rally.

YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS

Iran
Israel
Holocaust

UNITED NATIONS (CNN) -- The U.N. Security Council on Friday condemned remarks by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad denying the Holocaust and suggesting Israel should be moved to Europe.

A statement issued by the 15-member Security Council said, "The members of the Security Council reaffirm the rights and obligations of the state of Israel as a full and long-standing member of the United Nations, and reaffirm that, under the United Nations Charter, all members have undertaken to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state."

On Thursday, a spokesman for U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Annan was "shocked" to see the remarks attributed to Ahmadinejad.

Annan urged U.N. member nations "to combat such denial, and to educate their populations about the well-established historical facts of the Holocaust, in which one-third of the Jewish people were murdered, along with countless members of other minorities."

The secretary-general had previously criticized Ahmadinejad when he said Israel should be "wiped off the map."

Just last month, the U.N. General Assembly passed a resolution rejecting "any denial of the Holocaust as a historical event, either in full or in part."

Mohammad Mirtajedini, a member of Iran's Parliament, said Saturday Ahmadinejad's remarks were not controversial. As far as exaggerated suffering on the part of Jews during the Holocaust, Mirtajedini said European social scientists have made similar suggestions.

He said he does not believe the remarks will damage negotiations on Iran's nuclear program because it is unrelated, adding the nuclear issue is a controversy created by Israel and the United States.

Journalist Shirzad Bozorgmehr contributed to this report.

Story Tools
Click Here to try 4 Free Trial Issues of Time! cover
Top Stories
Get up-to-the minute news from CNN
CNN.com gives you the latest stories and video from the around the world, with in-depth coverage of U.S. news, politics, entertainment, health, crime, tech and more.
Top Stories
Get up-to-the minute news from CNN
CNN.com gives you the latest stories and video from the around the world, with in-depth coverage of U.S. news, politics, entertainment, health, crime, tech and more.
CNN U.S.
CNN TV E-mail Services CNN Mobile CNNAvantGo Ad Info About Us Preferences
Search
© 2007 Cable News Network LP, LLLP.
A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved.
Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines. Contact us. Site Map.
Offsite Icon External sites open in new window; not endorsed by CNN.com
Pipeline Icon Pay service with live and archived video. Learn more
Radio News Icon Download audio news  |  RSS Feed Add RSS headlines