The incendiary call by the Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for Israel to be "wiped off the map" provoked outrage in the Israeli press, which contended that this invited comparisons with the Holocaust. Iran's newspapers, on the other hand, by and large, rejected the international condemnation of Ahmadinejad's comments about Israel.
Uri Urbach in Yediot Aharonot wrote, "Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said that 'Israel must be wiped off the map'... What is worrying, other than the minor issue that one day we might all turn into dust because of a nervous Iranian missile, is that 60 years after the Holocaust a leader of a state again openly threatens to destroy the Jews."
Urbach's contentions were echoed by Haaretz in its editorial said, " In an extremist speech, the likes of which few have been heard before from an elected head of state, the Iranian president called for 'wiping Israel off the map' and even urged the Palestinians to continue terrorist activity against Israel... The open call to destroy the state of Israel highlights the comparison with another leader who was elected by his people in 1933 [Adolf Hitler], whose agenda included an open call to destroy the Jewish people."
Menashe Amir called for an international response to in Ahmadinejad's call, "Israel and the world must respond seriously to the declaration by Ahmadinejad and his masters, who are challenging the Western world and have already equipped themselves with ballistic missiles, and are now striving to make the bomb."
Ben-Dror Yemini took the thread further in the same paper, "Syrian spokesmen reiterate that they want peace with Israel, in return for the Golan Heights of course. They should be believed... If there is logic in our heads it is worth our while to prefer the lesser evil in the form of [Syrian President] Assad than full evil in the form of Zarqawi and the Iranian president."
David Horowitz wrote in Jerusalem Post, " The man was standing at a podium bearing a large poster blaring the title of the gathering, in English: 'The world without Zionism'. He was stating, calmly and confidently, that such a world was indeed entirely within reach... This week, in the boldest language imaginable, Ahmadinejad made plain that, where Israel is concerned, a nuclear Iran under his watch would be anything but benign."
An incensed Mahir Uthman said in UK-based al-Hayyat, "Iran did not need new problems before the sweeping statement by President Ahmadinejad, who said Israel should be wiped off the map... By making this statement, Ahmadinejad has given a perfect excuse for Israel to strike Iran's nuclear programme and attack the country."
The response in Iran varied, depending on its own stand over issues in Iran.
The first thing the Iranian government did in its reaction to the international community's reaction was to decribe its President's comments having been exaggerated by foreign media. Ali Larijani, one of the regime's most senior functionaries, said Ahmadinejad's speech had been subject to "abusive misinterpretation" by "certain Western media and certain countries". He said the scandal was merely "media manipulation" aimed at spreading suspicions that Iran is seeking nuclear weapons.
The ultra-conservative Jomhuri-ye Eslami reiterated the President's statement, " Israel must be wiped off the face of the earth. If the US administration is now furious that the president of the Islamic republic has repeated these words, it is because of the authenticity of this statement. In fact the only way to resolve the Palestinian issue is to wipe Israel off the map."
Conservative Resalat's comments were not that zealous, "Following their defeat in Gaza and Iraq, Israel and America are trying to intensify their psychological war against Iran... America and the Zionist regime have often expressed their wish to subvert the Islamic republic. But they find it intolerable when the Iranian president repeats the words of the Imam [Ayatollah Khomeini] and the Iranian nation."
The moderate Iran News was just as moderate, "The West has opportunistically used the president's remarks in line with its strategic goal of pressuring, isolating and confronting the Islamic republic. Furthermore, this pre-staged scenario provides further ammunition for Europe and the USA, which aim to report Iran's nuclear dossier to the Security Council. What's more, the West has now found a pretext to blame Iran for the violence in the long-running Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Reformist Mardom-Salari wrote along the same lines as Mahir Uthman, " In the diplomatic arena when our country is known as a proponent of the dialogue of civilisations, adopting a stance that creates tension can cause irreparable damage. Should our opponents use this stance or other excuses to prove their political view for exerting pressure on Iran, it will not be easy to persuade the world community that Iran's nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes. In fact, the position of our opponents to refer Iran's nuclear dossier to the UN will be strengthened."
