ASSOCIATED PRESS: TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — A former Iranian president warned the West on Friday that its support for Israel would backfire, as hundreds of thousands of people staged rallies in support of Muslim claims to the holy city of Jerusalem.
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who is still considered influential in Iranian politics, said the U.S., Britain and France back Israel — and this is dangerous.
"They will put themselves in trouble, eventually," Rafsanjani said during a Friday prayer ceremony in Tehran marking "Al-Quds Day." Al-Quds is the Arabic word for Jerusalem.
Israel could "take tougher and more offensive action" than the United States against Iran and the Arab world, warned Rafsanjani.
State-run television also aired clips on Friday featuring hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in New York. The president, who is in the U.S. for the U.N. General Assembly meeting, said Israel does not have support among ordinary people in America.
He also chided hundreds of demonstrators who protested against him during his trip, calling it a "big failure for them."
The latest anti-Israel remarks by Iranian leaders come as hundreds of thousands rallied in cities across the Persian country to protest Israel's continued hold on Jerusalem, the city where Muslims believe Islam's Prophet Muhammad began his journey to heaven.
In the capital, Tehran, demonstrators chanted "Death to America" and "Death to Israel" to commemorate "Al-Quds Day." Some protesters also burned American and Israeli flags. Iran Denounces Western Support for Israel >>> | September 26, 2008
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