Iran Jewish MP Criticises "Anti-Human" Israel Acts

[Purveyor]

Reuters

Wed May 7, 2008 2:53pm IST

TEHRAN (Reuters) - An Iranian Jewish leader on Wednesday said his community would not mark this week's 60th anniversary of the founding of the state of Israel, which he accused of "killing innocent" Palestinians.

"We are in complete disagreement with the behaviour of Israel," Siamak Morsadegh, the incoming Jewish member of the Iranian parliament following a March election, told Reuters.

"It is not related to us," he said about Thursday's celebrations in Israel to commemorate six decades of statehood. "We are Iranians. We have no relations with Israel."

Iran's ancient Jewish community has dwindled by roughly 75 percent since the 1979 Islamic revolution but is still believed to be the biggest in the Middle East outside Israel, which the Islamic Republic does not recognize.

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http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-33449620080507

[The Magistrate]

1. People Do What They Have To Do, Sir.....

[LeftishBrit]

2. I doubt that anyone would last long as an Iranian MP if they didn't...

and a Jewish one would be even more vulnerable (with possible risks to the community that he represents).

So he may or may not mean what he's saying.

[cali]

3. oh, please. What else is a member of a threatened and oppressed minority

going to say?

[notfullofit]

4. Exactly! nt

[msmcghee]

5. I think that in any political or ideological regime there will be some . .

. . who find themselves in the opposition.

I think it's possible that some members of the traditional Iranian Jewish community found themselves in the opposition within their community. Political and ideological rivalries always develop in any such community. In this case, I think it's possible that these people simply evolved a Jewish political / ideological community within Iran that was in opposition to their traditional Jewish community - for whatever reasons.

That the Iranian Muslim regime found their existence to be politically advantageous and offered them some form of protection is no surprise. Many regimes throughout history have allowed "Good Jews" to exist as long as their own regime could sufficient benefit. I don't see this as anything particularly unusual and see no reason to believe they are being forced under threat of punishment or death to pretend to prefer their Iranian existence over Aliyah.

As I understand it there are several thousand Iranian Jews in this community. It seems unlikely to me that they could be held there under mortal threat and against their will without that fact getting out somehow.

Jews in the world come in innumerable varieties, speak many different languages and have different and opposing opinions about Israel, politics, religion and even the best pizza topping.

[notfullofit]

6. 'Token' nt