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NEW YORK: Plans by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to visit New York next week
have sparked deep controversy in the United States, where the
Iranian leader is considered an ally of Islamic militants and Iraqi
insurgents.
Ahmadinejad is due to address the
UN General Assembly on Tuesday and had wanted to tour Ground
Zero—the site of the September 11 attacks of 2001, during his
visit, but was denied permission on Wednesday on security grounds.
However, the outspoken Iranian
leader, who has repeatedly called for the destruction of Israel and
questioned whether the Holocaust ever happened, is still scheduled
to speak on Monday at Columbia, one of the top US universities.
President George W. Bush backed
New York authorities Thursday in blocking a Ground Zero tour,
saying: “I can understand why they would not want somebody running
a country who is the state sponsor of terror down at the site.”
--AFP
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