Wiped Off the Map

"Imam ghoft: 'een rezhim-e ishghalgar-e qods bayad az safheh-ye ruzgar mahv shavad'."

The official translation of what president Ahmadinejad said in October 2005 during the "A World without Zionism" conference is: "Imam said: 'This Qods occupier regime must be eliminated from the surface of the Earth'."

In fact, an exact translation would be "Imam said: 'This Qods occupier regime must be eliminated from the pages of history'" the offical translation is based on what Ahmadinejad intended to say rather than what he did say. He intended to say "Imam ghoft: 'een rezhim-e ishghalgar-e qods bayad az sahneh-ye ruzgar mahv shavad'" but instead misquoted nad used Imam Khomeini (ra) and used "safheh-ye" instead of "sahneh-ye". There are disputes whether this ought then to be translated as "wiped off the map"; although give the official translation of: "eliminated from the surface of the Earth," I can see no objection. However, what is clearly beyond dispute is that he did not say "Israel".

The statement is available here in Farsi:


After almost a year, the Western media are finally addressing this deliberate mistranslation, largely due to an article by Jonathan Steele in the Guardian. Steele became aware of the issue after it was highlighted in the blog of professor Juan Cole, however as he points out, even the Zionist propaganda service MEMRI, concedes in its translation (available since the 28 October 2005) that President Ahmadinejad did not say Israel; preferring, "this regime occupying Qods". Steele also suggests that the BBC were aware at the time of publication, that he had not called for Israel to be wiped off the map.

In fact, the BBC received many complaints over its translation. I provided the official translation in the comments section of a BBC article posted on the net; this comment did not pass the censor, nor did any other comments with the official translation. This lie, for this is what it is, has been often repeated in BBC broadcasts, from news programmes to the Moral Maze, all without being checked. However it was not only the BBC, which as an apparatus of British state propaganda might be forgiven for using the British foreign office mistranslation; it was a lie carried by every mainstream British and US media broadcaster or publication that cared to comment on the matter.

This ought to be shocking; that is, if one believes that Britain and the United States do not have a media that would deliberately disseminate Zionist propaganda to galvanise public into supporting wars in the Middle East. However, I doubt many people would be shocked to learn that there is a pernicious Zionist influence in the British and US media, or come to that, in the British and US governments.

It is interesting that now this lie has been exposed in the mainstream media. Ethan Bronner, writes in the New York Times, one of the publications that perpetuated this lie, still finds himself incapable of honesty:

"So did he call for Israel to be wiped off the map? It certainly seems so. Did that amount to a call for war? That remains an open question."
This is after he concedes that Ahmadinejad did not mention the word Israel, thus no amount of obfuscation or sophistry, can change the fact that he simply did not call for "Israel to be wiped off the map". This is not the first groundless accusation made against President Ahmadinejad or Iran, they are made are a daily basis.

Not only were President Ahmadinejad's words deliberately mistranslated they were flagrantly misrepresented. After quoting, Imam Khomeini (ra), he added:

"This sentence is very wise. The issue of Palestine is not an issue on which we can compromise."
Thus, it was the Qods Occupier regime that he suggested must be wiped from the map. Moreover, President Ahmadinejad was not saying anything new, this is not only the stated view of Imam Khomeini (ra); it is the view of Ayatullah al-Uzma Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, and the official position of the the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Had "Qods Occupier regime" been used in the Western translation, instead of Israel, very few people would have had any difficulty grasping, that he was calling for regime change. Nor would any person who read the totality of his speech, perceive that he was suggesting that Iran has any intention of attacking Israel.

In fact during that conference, "A world without Zionism", he said:

"The Palestinian issue has not ended. It would end when a government belonging to the Palestinian people takes over, the homeless return home and a free election is held to form a government representing all people."

A point later repeated during his speech at "The Third International Conference on Qods and Support for the Rights of Palestinian People":

"Only a government chosen by the people can resolve the problem of Palestine and the people of the region. The right to govern belongs to all people of Palestine and they must decide the governing model of their choice and elect their own officials. For this purpose, there must be an opportunity for all genuine Palestinians; be they Muslims, Christians, or Jews, residing in Palestine or in Diaspora, to participate in a referendum to decide the political system of their choice and elect their leaders."

"Ever since the Palestinian nation focused attention on promotion of an Islamic atmosphere and attitude, day-to-day success and progress have been witnessed among Palestinians."
Hence what he was calling for was democracy, and the right of return; yet suggesting that Palestinians would bring this about through their own endeavor; particularly, since they had turned away from the Arab Nationalism of Fatah and turned to the Islamic political movements. He also described the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip as a "trick," designed to elicit recognition of the Zionist regime of Israel, from Islamic states.

He warned,
"The world arrogant powers founded the Zionist regime at the heart of the Muslim world as a base for their own expansionist intentions."
Moreover, what President Ahmadinejad said on the demise of this "fictitious regime" was no more or less than he said during his speech at "The Third International Conference on Qods and Support for the Rights of Palestinian People":
"The young tree of resistance in Palestine is blooming and blooms of faith and desire for freedom are flowering. The Zionist regime is a decaying and crumbling tree that will fall with a storm."

"A regime based on injustice and threat cannot survive. Today all conditions for the freedom of Palestine are on hand and available. Vigilance, unity and resistance are the keys to victory."
The truth then, is that his opposition is to a Western imperialism and a "Jewish State", which excludes the religious and racial identity of the majority of the indigenous population. He is not talking of the destruction or exclusion of Jews from Palestine; far from it, he is talking of integration; it is Israel that is committed to apartheid, ethnic-cleansing, genocide and belligerence.