Iran' Supreme Leader: Nuclear Weapons are Against the Teachings of Islam
- Sat, 02/20/2010
20 February 2010
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei asserted claim that Islam is "opposed to nuclear weapons," insisting that Tehran is not trying to build them. Iran's ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency is also calling a leaked report that Tehran is working to build a nuclear warhead "baseless."
Iran has long held that its nuclear program was for civilian purposes only, but a report on Thursday from the International Atomic Energy Agency cast doubts on those claims, in one of the most strongly worded rebukes of Iran's refusal to co-operate with nuclear inspectors assessing its nuclear program.
France and Germany threatened fresh sanctions against Iran on Friday following news of the report.
The two European countries said they were considering expanding sanctions against Iran through the UN Security Council if Iran continues to ignore UN resolutions.
"Of course Iran has the right to use nuclear energy for civil purposes, but it has no right to create nuclear weapons," German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle told reporters in Berlin.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued the religious ruling (fatwa) against nuclear weapons while addressing a crowd of military commanders after a ship-inaugurating ceremony. He told them that "Islam is opposed to nuclear weapons and that Tehran is not working to build them."
“We have said time and again that our religious beliefs and fundamentals consider nuclear weapons as a symbol of annihilation of generations, thus our religion forbids them.Accordingly we do not believe in acquiring nuclear arms.” said the Ayatollah.
The Supreme Leader said the claims of the US President Barack Obama and several other US officials over recent days are all signs of their anger and mishap over Iranian nation.
“The threadbare and vain claims that nuclear arms are being made in Iran indicate that enemies of the nation have resorted to repetition even in the field of propaganda out of extreme helplessness.
“In response to such vain claims, the Islamic Republic of Iran will not fall into emotions because we have repeatedly said that our religious ideas and beliefs consider such weapons, which are the symbols of mankind degeneration, forbidden and “Haram” (religiously prohibited).”
Iran's ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna indicated earlier Friday that Tehran had informed the new IAEA director Yukiya Amano that it had started enriching 20 percent grade uranium for its medical research reactor in Tehran.
"Even if the nuclear agency would continue for ten more years, the result would be the same," he said. "If a new director general comes, again, [he] will report the same, because we are absolutely sure and we have assured the international community that all are activities are exclusively for peaceful purposes."
Ambassador Soltaniyah added that a leaked report claiming Tehran was trying to build a nuclear warhead is "baseless," because the documents have "no confidential or secret stamps." The West, he argued, is trying to distort the nature of Iran's nuclear program for political purposes.
"Our advice is, in fact, to stop [these] political challenges and debates in the IAEA. Let the IAEA begin new director general to focus on their purely technical and professional work," he said.
Analyst Alex Vatanka says that Ayatollah Khamenei and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad are the two Iranian leaders in the ongoing nuclear debate that we should listen to.
"On the nuclear issue right now, if you look at all the players, there are really two voices that we should pay attention to, one is the president, the other one is the Supreme Leader. Khamenei, realizing how weak the regime under his control has been over the past 8 or 9 months has decided to play a far more public role," he said.
"He comes in and says, there's a fatwa [Islamic ruling] here [that nuclear weapons are not permissible] and he tries to link it to other issues, like with this very harsh statement he made about Secretary Clinton, saying she's a peddler, coming here to make Iran into the big regional bogeyman and sell billions of dollars worth of arms," he added.
The Vienna-based IAEA board will begin meeting next week, and its new Japanese head Yukiya Amano will preside.
Vatanka says that Iran will use the occasion to try and sow division among board members. "The Iranians very likely in the next couple of days will start trying to create a rift in the IAEA board and in the debate."
"They're going to say al Baradei was an Arab Egyptian who had sympathy for smaller states that are trying to stand up to what they call the "global arrogance," i.e. the USA. [Amano], this new Japanese bureaucrat [they will say] is in the pocket of the West. I don't think this is going to take the debate anywhere for the Iranians. If they genuinely want a quick resolution to this all, they have to provide the kind of access to the IAEA [of their nuclear facilities] that the IAEA is asking for, which by the way on paper they are committed to," he continued.
The latest IAEA report says that inspectors have verified that none of Iran's nuclear stockpile has been diverted. Nevertheless, it adds that Tehran has "not provided the necessary cooperation to permit the agency to confirm that all nuclear material in Iran is in peaceful activities."
Sources
"Supreme Leader: Iran has no belief in atom bombs" Malaysia Star February 20, 2010
Edward Yeranian, "Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei Says Islam Opposes Nuclear Weapons" Voice of America February 19, 2010
"Iran rejects UN nuclear report" CBC News February 19, 2010
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei asserted claim that Islam is "opposed to nuclear weapons," insisting that Tehran is not trying to build them. Iran's ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency is also calling a leaked report that Tehran is working to build a nuclear warhead "baseless."
Iran has long held that its nuclear program was for civilian purposes only, but a report on Thursday from the International Atomic Energy Agency cast doubts on those claims, in one of the most strongly worded rebukes of Iran's refusal to co-operate with nuclear inspectors assessing its nuclear program.
France and Germany threatened fresh sanctions against Iran on Friday following news of the report.
The two European countries said they were considering expanding sanctions against Iran through the UN Security Council if Iran continues to ignore UN resolutions.
"Of course Iran has the right to use nuclear energy for civil purposes, but it has no right to create nuclear weapons," German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle told reporters in Berlin.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued the religious ruling (fatwa) against nuclear weapons while addressing a crowd of military commanders after a ship-inaugurating ceremony. He told them that "Islam is opposed to nuclear weapons and that Tehran is not working to build them."
“We have said time and again that our religious beliefs and fundamentals consider nuclear weapons as a symbol of annihilation of generations, thus our religion forbids them.Accordingly we do not believe in acquiring nuclear arms.” said the Ayatollah.
The Supreme Leader said the claims of the US President Barack Obama and several other US officials over recent days are all signs of their anger and mishap over Iranian nation.
“The threadbare and vain claims that nuclear arms are being made in Iran indicate that enemies of the nation have resorted to repetition even in the field of propaganda out of extreme helplessness.
“In response to such vain claims, the Islamic Republic of Iran will not fall into emotions because we have repeatedly said that our religious ideas and beliefs consider such weapons, which are the symbols of mankind degeneration, forbidden and “Haram” (religiously prohibited).”
Iran's ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna indicated earlier Friday that Tehran had informed the new IAEA director Yukiya Amano that it had started enriching 20 percent grade uranium for its medical research reactor in Tehran.
"Even if the nuclear agency would continue for ten more years, the result would be the same," he said. "If a new director general comes, again, [he] will report the same, because we are absolutely sure and we have assured the international community that all are activities are exclusively for peaceful purposes."
Ambassador Soltaniyah added that a leaked report claiming Tehran was trying to build a nuclear warhead is "baseless," because the documents have "no confidential or secret stamps." The West, he argued, is trying to distort the nature of Iran's nuclear program for political purposes.
"Our advice is, in fact, to stop [these] political challenges and debates in the IAEA. Let the IAEA begin new director general to focus on their purely technical and professional work," he said.
Analyst Alex Vatanka says that Ayatollah Khamenei and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad are the two Iranian leaders in the ongoing nuclear debate that we should listen to.
"On the nuclear issue right now, if you look at all the players, there are really two voices that we should pay attention to, one is the president, the other one is the Supreme Leader. Khamenei, realizing how weak the regime under his control has been over the past 8 or 9 months has decided to play a far more public role," he said.
"He comes in and says, there's a fatwa [Islamic ruling] here [that nuclear weapons are not permissible] and he tries to link it to other issues, like with this very harsh statement he made about Secretary Clinton, saying she's a peddler, coming here to make Iran into the big regional bogeyman and sell billions of dollars worth of arms," he added.
The Vienna-based IAEA board will begin meeting next week, and its new Japanese head Yukiya Amano will preside.
Vatanka says that Iran will use the occasion to try and sow division among board members. "The Iranians very likely in the next couple of days will start trying to create a rift in the IAEA board and in the debate."
"They're going to say al Baradei was an Arab Egyptian who had sympathy for smaller states that are trying to stand up to what they call the "global arrogance," i.e. the USA. [Amano], this new Japanese bureaucrat [they will say] is in the pocket of the West. I don't think this is going to take the debate anywhere for the Iranians. If they genuinely want a quick resolution to this all, they have to provide the kind of access to the IAEA [of their nuclear facilities] that the IAEA is asking for, which by the way on paper they are committed to," he continued.
The latest IAEA report says that inspectors have verified that none of Iran's nuclear stockpile has been diverted. Nevertheless, it adds that Tehran has "not provided the necessary cooperation to permit the agency to confirm that all nuclear material in Iran is in peaceful activities."
Sources
"Supreme Leader: Iran has no belief in atom bombs" Malaysia Star February 20, 2010
Edward Yeranian, "Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei Says Islam Opposes Nuclear Weapons" Voice of America February 19, 2010
"Iran rejects UN nuclear report" CBC News February 19, 2010
