| Marking Israel’s 60th Anniversary, Iran Levels War Rhetoric |
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| Written by Editor | |
| Wednesday, 14 May 2008 | |
 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Israel is dying and that its 60th anniversary celebrations are an attempt to prevent its "annihilation". He stated, "The Zionist (Israeli) regime is dying," and that "The criminals assume that by holding celebrations ... they can save the sinister Zionist regime from death and annihilation." Ahmadinejad used an Arabic word, ismihlal, that can also be translated as destruction, death and collapse.
He spoke hours after President Bush arrived in Israel for the anniversary celebrations. Iran doesn't recognize Israel, and Ahmadinejad has repeatedly called for Israel's destruction. Threatening exchanges between Iran and Israel have intensified since 2005, when Ahmadinejad said in a speech that Israel will one day be "wiped off the map." The Iranian leader has also described the Holocaust as a "myth."
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