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Inside the Middle East
November 9, 2010
Posted: 1523 GMT
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad addresses a mass rally in the southern Lebanese border town of Bint Jbeil (Getty Images)
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad addresses a mass rally in the southern Lebanese border town of Bint Jbeil (Getty Images)

Fresh off the success of his controversial visit to Lebanon, it appears that Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will now be weighing whether or not to make another diplomatic visit – this time to the Gaza Strip.

According to semi-official Iranian news agency Fars,  the Hamas government in Gaza has extended an official invitation to the Iranian leader to visit the coastal strip in order to "boost resistance moral" of the territories 1.5 million Palestinian residents.

Hamas official Ahmed Yousef told Fars  “We invite (President) Ahmadinejad to pay a visit to the Gaza Strip, and we are confident that the visit will have extraordinary importance”

Yousef  told Fars he hoped that a trip by the Iranian leader would inspire Gazans in the same way it did for Lebanese.

Lacking the same enthusiasm would be Israel which has long accused the Iranian regime of providing weapons and cash to Hamas which is considered a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union.

"Perhaps he could be smuggled in through the tunnels with weapons" deadpanned Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor who said he did not expect an Ahmadinejad visit to take place, despite the invitation.

Israel and Egypt control the land, sea and air approaches to the territory and it would be unlikely that the Egyptian government of Hosni Mubarak , which has not enjoyed the friendliest of relations with Iran, would allow such a visit.

For his part Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who represents a rival Palestinian political faction,  will not be supporting a visit either.  He recently told CNN that both Iran and Hamas were impeding the peace talks with Israel.

"Hamas and whoever is standing behind Hamas – meaning Iran – is slowing the peace process. Yes, yes, Iran is pressuring Hamas not to be part of any agreement, so that they can use Hamas as a negotiations card in their talks with the international community and especially with the United States."

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Filed under: Gaza •Hamas •Hezbollah •Iran •Lebanon •Palestinians •West Bank


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mike   November 9th, 2010 5:25 pm ET

Well if the I ranian pres had any brains he would avoid a visit. I would hope Mossad takes him out if they get the chance. Hamas needs to be exterminated along with its followers... I feel bad for any palestinian who can't live a normal life because of the threats Hamas puts on its own people..

Filipe   November 9th, 2010 6:15 pm ET

"Perhaps he could be smuggled in through the tunnels with weapons"

Certainly !!!!!!!! Perfect opportunity to make an all out bombing run on the tunnel compex.

John A   November 10th, 2010 9:28 am ET

Funny how Mike & Filipe post about the need for extermination and bombing runs, but then accuse other of violence in the middle east.

I guess Mike and Filipe are now masturbating over their new "Call of Duty" game box. Personally I cant wait for Filipe to find a girlfriend. Then he might realize the world can be a happy place. I would love Filipe to have a child, then he might realize that one should be very slow to call for the destruction of another human life.

But I guess Filipe and Mike will never find the girl or have a family. For them the future will be wiping clean the cover of their "Call of Duty" game box and writing childish blogs which call for peoples death.

dapper98   November 10th, 2010 12:29 pm ET

John A

Are you for real? I have never ever seen a more insulting, off-topic, stupid and childish post than this.

You should apologize!!

DP

Ryan   November 10th, 2010 10:52 pm ET

John A,

I'm also sick of reading BS from the likes of Filipe. I'm pleased you tore in to that clown and I'm even more pleased CNN finally allowed a normal person to be uploaded a rebuff.

Personally I've written on several occasions to highlight how distorted, petty, vulgar and baseless Filipe's comments usually are. But there has always been a CNN bias which has allowed "pro Israelis", to throw insults until the cows come home and block all equivalent replies.

So well done and I second your comments concerning Mike & Filipe.

ryan   November 11th, 2010 12:32 pm ET

I don't know but I feel that this block is devoted to one side of the conflict: Israelis and where I live they say that there is no hope in trying to get your message across on CNN. iT IS UNDER SIEGE BY A GROUP OF COLONIZERS.

ryan   November 11th, 2010 12:33 pm ET

If I say that Hamas is free to invite any president, they will call you anti-semit.lol

ryan   November 11th, 2010 12:36 pm ET

is this moderation or israeli defence?

ryan   November 11th, 2010 12:39 pm ET

by the way, your total bias for israel causes only problems for you as you gain nothing but hatred in the whole world (just see how the popularity of obama has fallen down because he did nothing to stop israel from taking further land).

miriam   November 11th, 2010 1:17 pm ET

Ryan,

Wow! John A must be a "pro Israeli".
It seems that Ahmadinejad and Yousef are too!

Filipe   November 11th, 2010 1:54 pm ET

Ryan,

Sorry don't agree with my thoughts on the blog topic.

But some people who don't agree never fail to make personal insults to those who choose to post a respone to the subject---like you !! And John A !!!!

And for John A, I see he picked up a new word someone used on a previous blog to him........ now feels the need to repeat it elsewhere !!!

He he he he he he he !!!!

So how do you feel about Hamas inviting Amadinenutjob to visit Gaza ??

Do you think it's a good and wise idea???

Ricky Bobby   November 11th, 2010 10:53 pm ET

You guys should really find something more productive to do thsan engage eachother in pointless public internet battles...

snowboarderf17   November 12th, 2010 8:41 am ET

well said John A and Ryan. Hit the nail on the head

risab   November 13th, 2010 12:45 am ET

THE ARAB PEOPLE LOVE AHMADINEJAD MORE THEN THEIR OWN PRESIDENTS OR KINGS...IF THE ARABS GET CHANCE TO OVER THROW THEIR PRESIDENTS OR KINGS THEY WILL BURN THEM ALIVE

daniel   November 13th, 2010 9:09 pm ET

well there is a famous saying – "one's man terrorist is another man's freedom fighter", every coin have its own two sides, for example what israel had done n continue on doing have resulted a fierce battle of life n home between jews n muslims. like al-qaeda dismantle the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA'S peace on 9/11, in a similar fashion USA did with afghanistan n further gone onto iraq.....well it is another topic that 9/11 was really done by al-qaeda? but it has been proven fact that saddam hussain wasn't having or developing the weapons of mass destruction...saddam was really a cruel n brutal guy upon his own ppl but u can't hide the deads of AMERICANS n its allies, one of the heinous crimes they did n still doing over much of innocent ppl of IRAQ......they did good in the past but r doing worst now, same thing is going on in israel....wat a solution one can give, its ridiculous to b discussed here, but the thing is, only innocent life is at peril n perishing not by the definition of americans n its allies but by humanity n more than ninety percent countries of the world..... but all i have wriiten here will b understood as ANTI-SEMITIC or in a CNN way against humanity b'coz they(CNN n BBC) always feel n rather did so n continue on doing, it would not come to surprise me if they will delete my post ........ still hope 4 fair play from ALIGHTY GOD...

Bernard Aybout   November 14th, 2010 2:15 am ET

Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is an instigator and a troublemaker. He is extremely ignorant and his ideas, philosophies, and beliefs of hate and ignorance are detrimental to humankind.

A mossad assassination is possible, however will not solve any problems. Killing one man is not the solution to the problem. It is like fighting fire with fire. We do not fight fire with fire we fight fire with water. In conclusion, we must extinguish the idea, the philosophies, and beliefs of hate and ignorance that would prove to be more effective.

Instead, let him visit and speak in peace with much media attention. He will most likely hang himself just as he did on the Larry King Show and several past appearances.

miriam   November 15th, 2010 11:48 am ET

Ryan,

It is unclear what exactly you mean by claiming this blog is "devoted to one side of the conflict".

If you reasoning is based on the fact that a disproportionate number of articles are about Israel, you are absolutely right. But rather than being some kind of pro-Israel bias, (a joke considering that almost none of the opinions is positive about the Jewish state), the reason for this is more to do with media laws, freedom of press and freedom of expression.

Despite your perception, most likely indoctrination judging by the comment, "where I live....", Israel/Zionists/Jews do not run the media, and those who are involved in media have a whole spectrum of opinions.

Where do you think much of the international anti-Israel reporting comes from? Stories reported usually come straight from Israeli left-wing media sources who are concerned with internal political issues that are poorly understood by those on the outside but easy to repeat out of context.

The morals and values of democracy, liberalism, human rights and freedoms should be protected rather than compromised just because they are associated with the Jewish state. The lies and propaganda of the anti-Zionists, who are also against Western values, should not be given greater credibility than the truth and honesty of liberal democracy and legitimate Jewish nationalism for the sake of perceived popularity, even if that perception is only superficial. (Obama's loss of support has little to do with US support for Israel and much to do with domestic American affairs).

Joshua   November 16th, 2010 6:25 am ET

Why does HAMAS call it "resistance" when they boast about their intention to destroy Israel and murder Jews everywhere???

Orwellian reality: The Hamas charter call for the destruction of Israel, and Hamas calls it "resistance" ... and the world believes them and pours billions of dollars of aid and UNRWA keeps these people locked up in refugee camps. It is the UNRWA that they should be resisting.

dapper98   November 17th, 2010 9:10 am ET

Ryan

" (just see how the popularity of obama has fallen down because he did nothing to stop israel from taking further land)."

This shows you have no clue. What further land?

hahahahahahaha

allagee   November 18th, 2010 10:17 am ET

miriam
Good points and you bring up the subject in overall matter.
In realty there is two Palestinian problems
1. The Idea of Israeli Palestine . that is a problem Israeli Media created with the democracy, liberalism, human rights and freedom of speech Israel has in place. Giving anyone a stage to speak.

2.The arab Palestinian Problem
Israel is the only place you will hear about the Palestinian, but out of the 11.7 Million Palestinian around arab nations there is only 1.5 in Israel.
In 1948 Jordan massacred more then all the wars combine with Israel.
Just because thy triad to raise in Jordan.
in Egypt and in Lebanon thy have minimal rights and no freedom of speech.
why you never hear about them? because thy have no chance to do so in arab countries .
Iran like some other arab countries and other individuals don't care at all about the Palestinian people , Thy are the perfect tool to use fighting Israel and the Jews in whole .

miriam   November 18th, 2010 10:56 am ET

daniel,

Saddam Hussein used WMDs against the Kurds and the Iranians and had a nuclear weapons programme until it was destroyed.

So much for your claims that it has been proven that he had none.

Similarly, most of your other comments are baseless.

Your "freedom-fighter" hero Ahmadinejad incites hate and terrorism in the name of Islam. The only freedom he wants is the autocratic freedom to dominate the entire world and murder anyone who gets in his way.

The abuse of the term "freedom" by defenders of terrorism just fits in with their abuse and distortion of all human rights.

John A   November 22nd, 2010 9:33 am ET

Funny how all the Israeli supporters ( i.e. two writing under multiple names) have all failed to make a single factual statement.

For them its enough to say Arabs are full of hatred bla bla bla. And they act as if they have put forward a meaningful argument.

Sorry Israeli supporters, your arguments are totally empty.

To claim Iran is a threat and wants to occupy the entire world is probably one of the most idiotic lies that gets pushed by Israel and Jewish owned American media.

Nobody in Asia or Europe is worried about Iran and sees no threat at all. Although the British government will clearly act like a sock puppet for the USA and say whatever the White House wants.

Americans are living under a state of paranoia which has been inflicted on them by Israel, Jewish media and corrupt politicians who take Israeli lobby bribes.

So we survived the cold war with thousands of Russian nukes pointed against us for 60 years. And now we are terrified of a nation which has not even achieved nuclear power and certainly has no real capacity to deliver a nuclear weapon. Give me a break !!!!!!!!!!

Well I guess the Jews have learned through history that racial hatred is a strong tool. The nazis claimed the Jews sucked blood from babies and the Jews claim Arabs who have miniscule armies are plotting to take over the world. Talk about weird conspiracy theories....

Basically there are only two reasons anyone in the general public will believe what pro Israelis say.

1. They don't think for themselves, because its too easy to follow a wave a racial hatred. And too easy to bomb Arab countries, because they have no capacity to retaliate and bomb the west.

2. They know in their hearts they are wrong, but don't care because attacking Arabs allows western countries greater control over oil.

Filipe   November 22nd, 2010 5:11 pm ET

John A,

What exactly makes you think you have right to speak for everyone in Euorpe and Asia???

I live in Europe and I guarantee you that many people here are concerned about Iran and Amadinenutjob's policies and the violent rhetoric that he and the Ayassholas spew repeatedly about western nations.

Just speak for yourself....... not qualified to speak for or represent others and the feelings and opinions of others.

John A   November 23rd, 2010 12:17 pm ET

Oh Filipe lives in Europe and hasn't noticed all the anti war protest marches. The people of Europe have clearly expressed their desire to end all the illegal and totally unnecessary wars being waged against Muslim countries.

But I guess you missed that Filipe, while hiding under your blankets in a state of warped paranoid fear.

miriam   November 23rd, 2010 2:07 pm ET

John A, The Projectionist,

I'm not sure your hero Ahmadinejad will approve of your comments.
As far as he is concerned, they are anti-Islamic blasphemy.

Unfortunately, there may be many in Europe and Asia who think like you, ignorant of radical Islamic theology and feeling protected because the only country threatened openly is Israel.

Your modern-day blood libels are no different than those of former times.

John A   November 24th, 2010 12:09 pm ET

Miriam, If Saddam ever had weapons of mass destruction, my guess is he hid them in the massive space between your ears.

Possibly you should come back to this blog when you have less time to spare and you have resolved your paranoid dementia, which leaves you incapable of making any logical demonstration of your opinions.

miriam   November 24th, 2010 7:36 pm ET

John A,

Saddam Hussein used chemical weapons against the Kurds and the Iranians, fired missiles into Israel and Saudi Arabia and had an advanced nuclear weapons programme at Osirak.

These are all WMDs.

Filipe   November 25th, 2010 1:42 pm ET

John A,

Anti war protest marches ???? Did I claim to not see or hear of them???

These exist everywhere !! Even here. But they no where near constitute the vast majority of Europeans. Sorry.

What does this have to do with my previous post???

Oh.... I forgot...... you have difficulty with your comprehension of the English language! Sorry !!


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