ByJennifer Lipman, Jennifer Lipman
A US hate monitor has labelled comments by Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad "ominous" and warned the world to stop making excuses for him.
The Iranian leader, in statements quoted on his presidential website, spoke of a centuries-old Zionist conspiracy and accused the US predsidential candidates of "kissing the feet" of Zionists.
He said: "It has now been some 400 years that a horrendous Zionist clan has been ruling the major world affairs, and behind the scenes of the major power circles, in political, media, monetary and banking organizations in the world, they have been the decision makers."
He added: "Any freedom lover and justice seeker in the world must do its best for the annihilation of the Zionist regime in order to pave the path for the establishment of justice and freedom in the world."
Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, said his words "filled with antisemitism and expressions of contempt for Israel and its leaders, are a hallmark of the hate filled and irrational nature of the Iranian regime.
"So much for all the people who have been trying to make excuses and say, 'he doesn't really mean it," said Mr Foxman. "This is Ahmadinejad's most comprehensive antisemitic speech yet.
"In his bluntness, Ahmadinejad cuts through the false dichotomy of anti-Zionism and antisemitism when he uses the term "Zionist" to describe alleged Jewish control of the world for 400 years."