Israel’s UN envoy calls to ban Iranian president from assembly over Holocaust denial
Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations (UN), Gilad Erdan, called on the international body to deny Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi the right to address the assembly after he questioned the historical truth of the Holocaust.
Ambassador Gilad Erdan. (Israel’s Mission to the UN)
60 Minutes correspondent Lesley Stahl asked Raisi during an interview on Sunday if he believed “the Holocaust happened? That 6 million Jews were slaughtered?”
“Look… Historical events should be investigated by researchers and historians. There are some signs that it happened. If so, they should allow it to be investigated and researched,” he responded.
Stahl challenged him: “So you’re not sure, I’m getting that you’re not sure. What about Israel’s right to exist”?
Raisi said that “the people of Palestine are the reality. This is the right of the people of Palestine who were forced to leave their houses and motherland. The Americans are supporting this false regime there to take root and to be established there.”
Erdan stated in response that it is “shocking to hear Iranian President Raisi’s remarks calling into question whether the Holocaust happened,” he wrote, calling on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to DENY THAT DENIER a world stage to spread anti-Semitism and hatred.
Raisi and other leaders from around the world are slated to address the General Assembly later this week.
“The UN will reach a new low if they give the Butcher of Tehran a platform,” Erdan warned.
Raisi is nicknamed “the Butcher of Tehran” for his direct role in the extrajudicial executions of over 30,000 people during the Islamic revolution in Iran. He is designated by the US Treasury for these crimes.
