That whole "wiping them out" thing

Remember how I mentioned that the world wasn't amused at Iran's Prez call to wipe Israel out? Well, to curb down the damage, former Preisdent Rafsanji went and said that Iran respects Jews and Judasim. In a clear move aimed at calming worldwide tensions and condemnations over anti-Israeli remarks by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani said on Friday that Iran respected both Jews and Judaism. “We have no problems with Jews and highly respect Judaism as a holy religion,” Rafsanjani said at the Friday prayer ceremony which followed anti-Israeli demonstrations throughout Iran. And then A.J. went and repeated what he said yet again, in an Anti-Israel rally. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stood fast behind his assertion that Israel should be wiped off the map and repeated the call during the nationwide protests Friday, the Muslim day of prayer. [...] Marching alongside the protesters, the 47-year-old former mayor of Tehran and one-time Republican Guard commander renewed his criticism of the West. "They become upset when they hear any voice of truth-seeking. They think they are the absolute rulers of the world," he said during the al-Quds — or Jerusalem — Day protest, which was among the largest since they were first held in 1979 after Shiite Muslim clerics took power in Iran. His fellow marchers carried placards reading "Death to Israel, death to America." It is not uncommon for an Iranian president to join marches in the capital. Ahmadinejad was accompanied by five bodyguards, but otherwise security was not out of the ordinary for such an event. But.... The Iranian Embassy statement in Moscow said Ahmadinejad "did not have any intention to speak in sharp terms and engage in a conflict." So, what was that whole wiping Israel out thing? Europeans want to know exactly what he meant by saying that. Well, ScrappleFace may have the explanation right here: (2005-10-27) — The United Nations Security Council today took up discussion on what Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad might have meant when he called for Israel to be “wiped out from the map”. Secretary General Kofi Annan said Iran, as a member of the U.N., must be given the benefit of the doubt that the phrase was intended to encourage peaceful diplomacy. “‘Wiped’ is a word that can denote cleanliness,” said Mr. Annan. “The Iranian president may have simply meant that the map should be cleaned so Israel’s legitmate borders are easier to see.” Mr. Ahmadinejad’s remarks came during the month-long ‘World without Zionism’ celebration, and echoed the Ayatollah Khomeini’s previous comments about map hygiene. Yeah. That must be it.