Is Ahmadinejad trying to hide his Jewish roots by bashing Israel?

read your history books, there are plenty of jewish armenians

How come every major enemy to the Jewish people is Jewish himself? Hitler, Nejad, and a bunch of others were Jew, as well. This could only mean that the worst kind of people you can possibly get are Jews.

85% of Israelis are not Jewish but converted. So the roots of Jewish forget absolutly

I'm an Armenian Jew. There are thousands of us. Just wanted to throw that out there. Also - Sabourjian is an Iranian name, just like Derdoorian (for example) is an Iranian name. Not all -ian names are Armenian.

Chris Linthwaite, to be exact She was the only one to translate my name from Hebrew into English and that all includes all those that are known Jews in these forums Nice try Chris, why are you hiding??

Not all last names ending with ian are Armenian in Iran. There are other Iranian Jewish last name like Toumarjian. Also Sabour means Jewish Talhit that leaves no doubt about the Jewish root in Sabourjian last name.

It is quite plausible that Ahmadjinedad is Jewish. Anything is possible. History tells us that Father Tomas Torquemada of Spain, one the main enablers of the inquisition, was of partial Jewish ancestory. Anything is possible.

To Settle The Matter ! Since Ann from the ends of the earth finds the subject of Jews,Zionism,& Israel so interesting,unlike the dreary & monotonous life of daily robbing the Aborigines from their Land & Livelyhood. I have a proposal for her: Send a sample to her laboratory of Ahmadienjad's Penes (take it easy not too big !) so that she can verify whether he had any Jewish roots or not. The matter is urgent & important for State reasons to formulate future Foreign policy ! Take this matter in your hand ! Ann.

According to the law of return we are obligated, should he have problems in Iran to welcome him to a nice little kibbutz. We can put him to work as a talis maker. What do you say, my fellow landsmen? Lets give him a nice, warm Jewish "Welcome Home!!!"

Ahmadinejad sure looks Jewish to me!

I believe due to many historical facts, there is some Iranian blood in every Jewish body. Look at most close to all East European Jews came from Iran. The we hear the Khezer Kingdom in Northern Caspian See! In fact, every jewish in the world is more Iranian than Israeli.

I knew for sure that Ahmadinejad was a puppet of the Western nation and was boldly condemning the Jews indicated that he was simply a player in the political realm. In contrast, Shah of Iran was kind to the Jews in Iran and did not boast as much as Ahmadinejad. I am not sure if he is Jewish. A lot of Armenians mixture of Medianites and Persians were/are living in Iran. A Jewish soul no matter where they live and having changed their identity for survival would always support the cause of Israel. We may have to wait and see Ahamdinejad's actions concerning Israel.

For those who want to form their own opinion about the event, a non-"humorous" version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-r04SQ97_Q

Like US president that should be a christian, an Iranian President has to be a Shia. Otherwise, he loses legitimacy.

The question goes to the people with Old Peraian linguistic knowledge.

The question goes to the people with Old Peraian linguistic knowledge.

For those Sabourjian is Armenian becasue of the ian or jian, stop spreading disinformation. Do you even realize in the area of where he is from almost all the Jews have ian endings!

A probe of Ahmadinejad Jewish roots go to: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/3055545/video/R/CFD_1000

With the application of Y-chromosome marker technology, a DNA sample from either Mr. Ahmadinejad or from a blood relative of the surname Sabourjian, plus samples of other Iranian Sabourjians who are 1) not closely related to each other, and 2) who self-identify as either Jewish or Moslem, it should be easy to test this hypothesis. Family Tree DNA could provide an answer at a reasonable price in a short time. A sample of Mr. Ahmadinejad's DNA, or an appropriate blood relative, could be collected covertly or overtly.

Nazi SD forces comander and chief planner of the final solutions of the Jews Reinhardt Heydrich's parents were Jews and converted to Christanity. According to Hitler's classification he should considered Jews and send to gas chamber. That's why he became such a cruel Nazi to hide his problematic past.

Instead of the nether region it should have been around the Garon

My kids go to a Jewish School with a 50% Iranaian population. There are a few kids with last names ending -ian, so -ian does not exclusively mean Armen-ian.

yes, ofcourse he roots back to jewish. I do not know if he is really trying to hide his Jewish roots or he is just another Israeli in Iran, doing the same as them not in palestine but in Iran. Alot of big jewish families in Semnan have family names called Sabourjian. Another point is his new family name ahmadinezhad. Many of the Jewish who convert to Islam change their family to Ahmadi+something(Nezhad, Nia) or plain Ahmad or Mahmoudi, Mahmoud to connect themselves more and more to the Muslim's prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him). It is so clear.. I knew that from long time ago.

Much more akin to premeditated murder with pride. Who gives a damn what motivates him.

Perhaps you're unaware that Hitler had his hometown demolished to cover that fact that his Grandfather was a Jew. It might be of interest to you to know that FDR was also Jewish as well as Eisenhower, and both Winston Churchill and Stalin had Jewish mothers. Who knows, you might be Jewish too. Many 'converted' to stay alive. Some famous American have recently found they were also Jews who were raised "Christian." Madelyn Albright, John Kerry. The list goes on and on. Ten tribes are still missing, they are now "Christians' ...."Buddhists" etc. Wasn't St. Peter also a Jew? Jesus Christ? Moses? All of the prophets, and G-d Himself Ignorance is an awful illness. Glad it lives in muslimorama.

Look prophet Mohammed was not born as Muslim as well as Jesus Christ was never born as catholic, orthodox or protestant christian ...so what???

when will he also destroy his home town and all the people who know he comes from a Jewish family? Betcha this wont be published in Iran. I find it hilarious, if very sad.

I'm absolutely gobsmacked. As the Americans say 'Who'd have thunk it?' They say truth is often stranger than fiction. Mind you, just think what mileage the Internet conspiracy theorist will get from this.

And so does Ahmadinejad

Has anyone found any Sabourjian relatives of Ahmadinejad who can say one way or the other?

...after he discovered that he, too, may be a Jew (he was afraid that he's real father, an actor named Geyer was Jewish). http://www.smerus.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/vulture_.htm

Ex-Jews make the worst Jew haters.

that is not even funny but boring. every villain on earth was claimed to be jewish-hitler, stalin, no this iranian clown. the name is not jewish and neither is he. ahmadi is jewish like mao tse tung was jewish

its the same principle with homophobia, those who scream the loudest are usaully those who cant face their own homosexual feelings and attempt to suppress them by attacking verbally and physically other gay people.

What is the similarity between Ahmadinejad & Mustafa Ataturk of Turkey ! Both were Jewish pretended to be Muslims, Ataturk destroyed Othman Empire And its Ahmadinejad turn to destroy Iran.

Please tell me this is a joke - that this pig is actually Jewish.

Ahmadinedjad's Jewish ancestry can be traced back to Adam and Eve! Ridiculous! I also suspect all those Arab/Muslims and the hundred million others who make anti-Israel statements to hide their own Jewish connection as well! Nourizadeh, what a fake expert you are! Could it be that the Ayatholas do not know were that "little dwarf" came from? Not likely!

his absolute quit claim to the "Western Bank" of Jordan, including state lands conquered in the 1948-49 war against the nascent Jewish State of Israel... http://www.kinghussein.gov.jo/88_july31.html

http://nakedloon.com/news/us-world/2008/07/14/ahmadinejad-discovers-embraces-jewish-ancestry/

It is the recent funniest international joke. There were rumors about Jewish origins of Hitler.even Hedrich { chief of Security of Nazi Germany] but it is true about Karl Marx and Otto Wenninger and some others , usally first class Jews- haters. The "former" Jews are frequently most passionate among enemies of Jews and sometimes they are talented, like Karl Kraus or well-known like our conteporary and my favorite one, Tony Jund who is actually former Israel. With 17% of Spaniards genome { thinking about Palestians?} being of Jewish origin who is sure about Ahmadi origins either. It would be disappoitment if he has none of it. After all he is so passionate, just like Tony Jund.

So does that mean that he is entitled to israeli citizenship and land that belongs to palestinians too

Many Jews have German names, that doesn't make them Christians My own European name has also been Anglicized, that doesn't make me English And you point was???

from the Daily Telegraph article: "...During this year's presidential debate on television he was goaded to admit that his name had changed but he ignored the jibe. However Mehdi Khazali, an internet blogger, who called for an investigation of Mr Ahmadinejad's roots was arrested this summer. " http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/6256173/Mahmoud-Ahmadinejad-revealed-to-have-Jewish-past.html

We need to have Neturei Karta authorities verify Ahmad's Jewish origin. Should he be confirmed as A Jew in disguise, he will be allowed to make "aliya" (immigrate) to Israel & live in the Neturei Karta neighbourhood. He will join the self-hating Jewish club in Jerusalem.

You're absolutely correct, but this is the usual propaganda that is portrayed to the world, namely, that anyone who is critical of Israel is the equivalent of hating Jews. I am surprised at Ha'aretz also for the misrepresentation of such facts. It is pretty obvious that Ahmadinejad;s criticisms are leveled at Israel. As for the Holocaust, I'm not sure why he is constantly accused of being a Holocaust denier, when the Holocaust has been used as a tool to shield any criticim against Israel and for Israel to carry out its own atrocities. The latter is surely the crime, and not whether one denies or questions an event.

Anti-semitism is a phenomenon born of nationalist politics in Europe, through which Jews were considered (incorrectly) to be a Semitic people who are not part of European civilization; this manifested itself in many ways from a liberal enlightenment perspective to an ultra-nationalist one, but that is the basic epistemological origin. To suggest that it is anti-semitic to oppose Zionism is an absurd statement. One might remember that the majority of the world's Jews were against Zionism in the early part of the 20th century, so by your claim the majority of Jews at this time were anti-semitic. One might also recall that at this time, most European anti-semites embraced Zionism as a means to remove the Jews from Europe, recognizing their incompatibility with Euro civlization. Through your misunderstanding of Judaism and Zionism, you are trying to equate a thousands year old spititual and ethical tradition, with a racist colonial nationalist movement. I find your attitude anti-semitic.

He was caught red-handed secretly watching a Woody Allen movie, and then laughing at Jackie Mason shticks on YouTube. That settles it!

Talk about the pot calling the kettle, black.

The Iranian president is a descendant of the Jewish Saborjian family from the village of Aradan. This is known here in Iran. His crazy rants against Israel could indicate that he works for the right wing in Israel who benefits from his extremism and Holocaust denial that he certainly does not believe in.

Even if he has jewish past it does not have any bearings on his stands visa vi the situation in the middle east,but there is no question in my mind,there must have been a lot of Iranian jews who converted to Islam a long time a go, I have traced my great great father on the side of my mother to jews in Yazd with the family name Solomon.

Hitler was not Jewish. He was a devout, lifelong Catholic, just like Mel Gibson and the current pope.

Judaism is a nation, but not a race. Your cynicism about the looks is abhorrent. Being gay and yet not have compassion for a nation which has been perscuted and massacred for millenia is heartless, as gays have been persecuted too, and still are in Iran.

Ask Persian Jews anywhere, in California for example; they will tell you.

Has Karl Rove gone to work for Mir-Hossein Mousavi? This 'news' item rests entirely upon innuendo and sounds too reminiscent of the fake "John McCain has a black love child" story that Mr. Rove used to destroy McCain's run against George Bush in the 2000 Republican primary. Additionally, Iran's Ayatollahs vet their presidential candidates to disqualify those that they regard as unsuited. Certainly a 4 year old Jewish convert to Islam would be disqualified immediately. Even a Hamas Sunni fundamentalist is less outright anti-semitic than a Shiite. Shiites regard Jews as ritually unclean (which they call najis). If a Shiite so much as touches a Jew, he must make a ritual abolition before he may pray. Some Iranians in Los Angeles will never shake hands with a Jew for exactly this reason.

The question remains obscure. Hitler's grandmother's Jewish employers did treat her pregnancy in a way that pretty much fits with what a wealthy family would do if the young buck got the maid pregnant. Then too, the SS or whoever did investigate the matter at Hitler's request -- and the results were suppressed. Finally, after the annexation of Austria, Hitler arranged for the entire village and surrounding area in question to be requisitioned for an artillery firing range and razed... All very suggestive. I'd say Hitler himself must have had his doubts. Offhand, I'd say neither he nor we will ever know for sure. Actually, given that there are surviving relatives, some of the more new-fangled DNA tests might shed some light, although since Jewish bloodlines are good deal more intermingled with everyone else's than either Jews or those who hate them like to admit, I'm not sure the results could be more than suggestive.

It is a curious thing that one can have problems with Serbia and not hate Christians, one can have problems with Saudi Arabia and Iran and not hate Islam, but if one has problems with Israel, it must be because one hates Jews. I grew up and live in New York City (one of the great Jewish cities of the world) and have never noticed myself having any problems with Jews or Judaism. However Judaism is a religion while Israel is a country and one can have problems with the country but not the religion (as with Iran and Saudi Arabia).

the first article i read on this went into a bit more detail: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/6256173/Mahmoud-Ahmadinejad-revealed-to-have-Jewish-past.html

Rather frightful your contradictions, dear chap. Obviously those of Hebrew origins changed their names, one example of which some Portuguese are proud of is the surname Carvalho, which is derived from a simple horse. Obviously, the Inquisition inspired said change.

He has jewish root.

ANY challenges to zionism; and there are no defining characteristics other than that... which leaves it wide open to include just about anything. it certainly no longer has ANYTHING to do with jews or judaism other than an inherent. though not necassary universal, association. btw, i can't think of any instance where ahmadinejad has ever explicitly expressed hatred, dislike, or animosity towards "jews", unlike what zionist propagandists have led eveyone to believe. his rhetoric is strictly towards israel and zionism. and i'll venture that his holocaust denial stems more from its use by zionists to further their agenda; than it does the actual denial of an historic fact. ie, just as their abuse of the word "anti-semitic" has muddied its definition to the point that it no longer seems to carry any vestige of its original meaning; so too are the horrors of the holocaust becoming distant and vague from the repeated zionist invocations of its memory to justify israel's agenda against the palestinians.

Oh dear. Dr.Livingston and Stanley, are attributed to the above. However, back to the main subject. He, Mr.A, that is, does most certainly show a great deal of chutzpa,quite becoming to his questionable Jewish roots. The English media will have a field day. I doubt that the Tehran press will dare cover said allegations. Good night from chilly Swiss Alps.

Mohammed didn't hold any special grudge against Jews.

Thank you for your comment, Gil. My (mom's) family name is Schlossberg, which would seem German because both Schloss and Berg are German names. Yet in the part of Lithuania where my family emigrated from Schlossberg is/was a common name exclusively among Jews.

Good suggestion! The poeple of Iran dont like him and wish to get rid of him as soon as possible! Do us iranians a favour, please.

Of all peoples in the world, Jews - of all origins except Ethiopian - are most closely related genetically to PALESTINIANS and Syrians.

Actually, the meaning of the name Sabourjian is not cloth weaver But Praying Shawl Weaver I think it won`t take long that we will see Achmedinijad locked up in Evin Prison Where it is said that a ``Bird who gets in, cannot get out? ``Where god himself cannot get in, or get out``

When the EU or any of its constituent bodies adopts an anti-Israeli resolution or measure, you applaud their intelligent analysis of the situation and their response. But when the EU or any of its constituent bodies adopts a resolution which can be construed as in some way supporting the Jewish State, you write: "the law has no connection to reality. People have passed many laws that have nothing to do with reality,as does this one." What, then, is "reality" in your view?

I've always thought he might be Jewish.

"Interesting! If correct lets bring him here on aliya" - Mel McManus A capital idea. And a gift of a good laugh to us all Mr. McManus.

The region Abraham, Sarah, Tehra, Nahon hailed from is so close to Iran - they were probably of Iranian descent.

I am an Iranian Jew and my surname is Machboubian, I have Jewish Iranian friends with surnames Eshagian. Yes, many Armenians have surnames ending in "IAN" but that is not exclusive to Armenians. Rosenberg is german, but german Jewish. Lechovitsky is polish but polish Jewish. It all depends on the actual name and how it's used. A quick verification would be to find another Saborjian and see if they are Jewish or Armenian.

In both Turkey and Iran there are several people who are of Armenian descent and who are hiding this. One possible (but not hundred percent sure) example is the present islamically oriented president of Turkey, Abdullah Gul. He very likely has Armenian ancestors but every time the issue is risen, there are angry outbursts from his side. All this is stupid because anyone can have any background and there is nothing to be proud or ashamed of. Nobody has a pure ethnicity or religious ethnicity, not even jews who alway make a special effort not to mix.

Oy gevalt!

this is the argument of all the Ahmadinejad. we like Jews,we hate Israel Who do you think you are fooling?

In every country that Jews lived, they took the last names of local origin. There are jews in India with last name Charikar/Chuelkar/etc - which are very close to local last names in Maharashtra region of India where they lived. Similarly Jews in Poland took last names like Grodsky, Kazinsky, etc. Jews in Italy, France, Germany, Iraq, Morocco also have taken last names according to the region. So jumping to conclusions based on last name is invalid.

Argues that a Polish Jew is different from a Yemeni Jew. If they are cohanim, as my family is, they are exactly the same. Indeed, we trace our roots from Poland back to Holland and further back to Spain and thence back to the Middle East. Actually have documents from Spain through the immigration to the US in early 1900s. Talk about what you know, not what you surmise. (Incidentally, my father spoke Sephardi, not Yiddish)

The real definition of Anti Antisemitism is someone who hates Jews more than is necessary.

Similar to the claim that Hitler was Jewish... Next thing will be to claim that Saddam Hussein was Jewish. Soon these tabloid papers will go out of business.

Many or most Palestinians must be descended from converted Jews -- albeit the conversions took place considerably earlier than those of Ahmadinejad's family. Indeed, I wouldn't be surprised if it could be shown that the Palestinian gene pool has a larger Jewish element than some of the 'Jewish' gene pools. Compare a Polish Jew to a Yemeni Jew -- ALL their ancestors obviously aren't the same folks.

... is his real name Judas...?

He could be one of them.

I agree, what does it matter. Look at Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan Israel hater-his mother had Jewish roots. Who cares?

#5 mentioned Hitler's roots. Hitler's grandmother worked for a Jewish family. That doesn't make Adolf Jewish in any way shape or form. Historians have, I believe, discounted the rumour that grandma had an affair with, and become pregnant by, one of the men in the family. Hitler's roots are Austrian and Catholic.

According to Wikipedia and the Jewish Virtual Library... are you concerned Mr Ahmadinejad may have more legitimacy to the "promised land" than European Ashkenazi Jews?

.Like Hitler,Lenin,Stalin,Franco,Mussolini,Mao Ze Dong,Khomeini,Nasser,Hafez Assad,Kemal Ataturk,Yasser Arafat,all the popes,the emperors of China,Hiroito,Florence Nightingale,Madame Curie,the queens of Holland and Uk.Ah,and don"t forget,Batman,Mandrake,Superman,Wonder woman,Spiderman and Tarzan.

first christianity and then later Islam...the jews from eastern europe are in fact europeans caucasians, similarly to 'white-turks'...many tribe in arabia are also jewish converts...wots the big deal if he- ahmedinajd- comes from a jewish family that converted to islam....some say the same about the saudis

The Architect of the Autodafe in Spain was Jewish too. So was Saup of Tarsus aka Paul. So what?. I guess there is a little Jew in every one. What is the point of the article. I agree with the responders who pointed out that 1. the name Sabourjian is most likely Armenian and therefore Christian and not Jewish. 2. That Ahmedinajad's beef is with Zionism and not with the Jews even if he 'denies' the Holocaust which I doubt he does not really and knows better. I have no doubt that were the Israeli Palestinian conflict resolved, The Iranian PM would get off his high horse.

There's an Abe Lincoln story in which he asks "If the state of Illinois passes a law saying the cow's tail is a leg, how many legs does a cow have?" The answer is four - the law has no connection to reality. People have passed many laws that have nothing to do with reality,as does this one.

I don't know any Iranian Jew in Israel by the name of Sabourjian, therefore it can't be a very common Jewish name. Sabourjian means Street sweeper. Ahmadinejad's grandfather was indeed a street sweeper, and maybe the family tried to move up the social ladder by changing its name.

The simplest explanation is that Ahmadinejad has been a populist demagogue his whole political career. He has always based his politics upon appealing to the poor, ill- and uneducated, those easily manipulated by use of fear, hatred and bigotry. He has failed miserably to accomplish any of the relief for the poor he promised to become President and seeks to deflect criticism by his habitual means, demagoguery. The man is a calculating jerk, not a nut case.

In the West, this practice of identifying real or secret Jews by the supposed Jewishness of their names so as to cast aspersions is usually an activity reserved for antisemites/neo-Nazis. How disappointing that our media decides to engage in this unfair practice now that becomes politically convenient.

He's a member of the Shiite Twelver sect and that's what people have to keep in mind.

In fact Achmedinijad is not the only one in Iran not of Muslim descent. Prior to the Mongols conquest of Persia in the 700s AD the bulk of Iranians/Persians were Zoroastrian. Only through brutal repression did the people convert - there still remains a tiny Zorastrian community in Northern Iran/Persia. Perhaps if Iran returned to its roots the world would be a better place

LOL!

I've never understood why holocaust is against the law in so many places or why it seems to cause such angst in Jewish population. While incredibly stupid, holocaust denial doesn't portend a new holocaust. Didn't "historian" David Irving spend time in jail for this offense? It seems to me it says more about the denier then it does about the holocaust. A large segment of the American population denies that the Civil War had anything to do with slavery. Should that stupidity be against the law? Does it portent the reintroduction of slavery?

.....yes, lets' bring him 'home' on Aliyah and then put him on trial for all his crimes.

Even if what you say is correct there is a significant Armenian Jewish community.

Natallie Durson, Maureen Ann, BBSNews, Chris Linthwaite, CJ, Johnboy, Yaakov Sullivan, Mark of Lewiston, Roo, Silvienne, Viper and (of course) I all have Jewish roots...:) Isn't it (a little) funny how we all come to this site every day of our (boring) lives just to bash Israel...??? Nevertheless, we are not (very) anti-semitic. We (simply) abhor the policies of (right-wing) Israelis and diaspora Jews...:) Is that wrong...???:)

Greetings to all! Sabojihan/Sabourjian is a family name only belonging to Jewish families in Aradan...Semnan and nearby regions in north east Iran. In 1986 Ayatollah Khazali confidentially told Ruhollah Khomeini that the person who administers the "coup de grace" at Evin prison to those sentenced to the firing squad and who is also a member of the "Students Line of the Imam" who occupy the US Embassy was born in a Jewish family and whose father and mother are both Jews and in fact had a religious transition in the family when his father; a black-smith converted to Islam and shed his original family name. Khomeini said: "Saeed Emami (murder chains who ultimately was killed in prison by the orders of Khameini and later said to have committed suicide!!) is also born of Jewish family, let him (Ahmadinejad) do his job." It is not a big secret, the first Commerce minister of the mullah regime (Ali Asghar Owladi Mossalman) was a Jew till age of 33. Ahmadinejad turns purple at the word "Jew."

No, you are the one who who is distorting the truth. Someone who denies the existance of the Holocaust is nothing but a Jew hater. This has nothing to do with Zionism!

He is probably well aware of Jewish perfidity in the Middle East. Israelis say the Arabs are trying to push Jews into the sea when in reality it is the other way around. Jews want all the land between the Nile and the Euphrates. Jews say that everyone is anti-Semitic when in fact they are mostly an anti-Semitic people of Khazar Ashkenazi extraction with not one drop of Israelite blood in them! The real descendants of the Israelites are the Palestinian people who stayed in Palestine and later converted to Christianity and Islam. The lie of modern colonial zionism will in the end destroy you. Better to realise your past mistakes before the whole civilised world gets wise to your fraud.

You wouldn't believe it, knowing his rabid hatred for Jews.

Anti-Semitism is not the only possible cause of Holocaust denial. There are at least these others: 1. Ignorance 2. Stupidity 2. Sincere doubt about the evidence I am just hoping that one of these, or some other, applies to Ahmadinejad. The position of the Jews in Iran makes me think that any anti-Semitism there is there is much milder than that which showed itself in several European countries over the last century. And some speakers at the conference on the Holocaust in Iran clearly stated that it took place (e.g. the Neturei Karta delegation)

How ignorant of me all not to understand that when Ahmadinejad speaks about wiping out Israel, he is only referring to almost six million Zionist Jews, and that when he simultaneously denies the Holocaust contemptuousally and derisively for the genocidal murder of six million Jews, all of whom were not residents or citizens of Israel, but just because they were Jewish, he is merely joking. He is fortunate that his own family was in Iran at the time, because conversions were irrelevant to the Nazi doctrines of racial purity & contamination. Zionism is the right of the Jewish people to a State, so that they will never fall victim again to the capricious hatred of the Ahmadinejads of this world. This does not negate our own humane and ethical obligation to minorities within Israel and our commitment to peace with the Palestinians, and I along with many other Jews here are strong advocates of these goals. But please, enjoy your laughter. There is a new Holocaust Cartoon Contest in Tehran.

Most people are Jewish and just don't realize it. That's why I recommend we change the definition and sell membership. Nobody will attack their own Country Club.

Although most if not all Armenian names end with an IAN -like mine, it is not a unique identity to Armenian only. There are hundreds and thousands of Iranian family names ending with IAN or YAN. By the way Moshe Dayan would also be an Armenian if we continued with this argument of YANS being Armenian.

not emotion why you do not dare to tell the truth Goldstone is jewish too

I would say pull his pant down to make sure. I have heard he carries Benjamin Netanyahu's and Ariel Sharon's picture in his wallet. Somes aid he dreamt to be Jew and then god spoke to him he said become a Muslim, kill Iranians, by pretending you hate Jews then when you killed Millin Iranians convert back to Judaism and become the state of Israel hero. I know that MF was not an Iranian.

the EUME definition of anti-Semitism, because it includes denying the Jews the right to a state of their own, o.e., anti-Zionism.

we all born moslem and parent either christinze or judify the new born we fight for god those who abandoned god

Mel McManus I love your sence of humour man. makes me smile every time' keep it going

The fact that Ahmadinijad denies the Holocaust makes him an anti-Semite - this according to the Working Definition of anti-Semitism of the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia

We were all born Jews. So what is new. We are all victims of "religionism". A Jewish friend said this to me: "We all fight for God and God is one" Very true.

Look, it does not matter what he is, or is not. What matters is this guy is not a Statesman material. He is an absolute miltia gangaster who took unarmed diplomats hostage for 444 days. He belongs in jail. He, likes others thrive on the business of Allah (Allah is innocent of him and his likes), and making fiery statesments that only serve those who do not want peace in Israel and the Arab World.

If you know any better, there are Armenian Jews also......plenty of them, so dont say that there are no "Armenians" that are jews. People are mixing religon with nationality. Armenian is a nationality and 'Jewish' is a religon. There are Armenian christian, Armenian muslims, etc, etc.

The last stages of anti-Semitic metastasis are considering all murderers and opressors of the Jewish people as "hidden Jews". Garmsar, in the Tehran province, has no connection with the forced convertion of Jews to Islam in the Meshad province, in far eastern Iran. No Sabourjians are original from Mashad either. This is utter drivel. The anti-Semitic massacre of the AMIA in Buenos Aires, in 1994, perpetrated by Iran and Hezballah predates Ahmadinejad in more than a decade. And ever since the very first military parades after 1979, the banners "Israel will be destroyed" have been seen on banners, missiles and weapons. Ahmadinejad's compulsive anti-Semitism is nothing personal, but part and parcel of the Iranian regime. Ayatollay Khamenei who is of Azeri background, is as toxic an anti-Semite as this Hitler from Garmsar.

This is another lie in the attempt to create a picture as if Jews are responsible for all of the world?s evil just like saying that Hitler was a Jew. Even if his family used to be Jewish, AhmadiNutJob is a Muslim now and he represents a Muslim regime which makes his background (whether he is an ex Jew or Armenian) totally irrelevant.

e.g., Mr. Linthwate. They have to rationalize "the betrayal"

Dear PJ (number 3). Many Jews for Kurdistan and Armenia have the same name endings (JIAN) too. Just as many Indian Jews from the Konkan coast have KER after their names- added on to the town or village they lived in. Non Jews from the region also used the KER.

his family roots are: The least credible source would be a British tabloid with an anonymous Iran "expert". BTW, Elvis lives. Upcoming report in a British tabloid.

Ahmadinejad hates Israel because it is the single tiny sovereign Jewish state, in the Jews' ancestral homeland, no less. Rather forbidden here by Islamic law, in case you didn't know...

David: When he goes as far as to deny the existence of the holocaust he is attacking Jews everywhere.

Right. He doesn't hate Jews. He just suggests that the Holocaust is a lie, which is an example of critical thinking and intellectual brilliance. All of us are being such fools believing in the Holohoax, seeing that there is no trace of the Jews in Greece, Hungary, Belorussia. Oh, stupid us, thank you Ahmadinajad and David James Vickery for enlightening us. But nice to see that the enemies of Israel have chosen such enlightened regime as the Iranian to carry the flame of their struggle. So what if protesters were raped in jail, that women have no rights, that people are hanged on the streets there. The important thing, Mr. Ahmadi is an enlightened seeker of global justice, Jew or not. And David James Vickery finally found a hero. A hero who believes in stoning women for touching a non-relative male.

There is no difference.

You make me laugh,whoever wrote this, your attempts at distortion are so transparent. Ahmadinejad is an enemy of Zionism, the state of Israel, but he does not hate Jews per se. We know the difference and so do you. Who do you think you are fooling?

As in Turkey, why does it matter, except the ultranationalists don't want any reformers and any people friendly or with Jewish roots in office. Any candidate picked by Ayatollah would be an Israel basher.

And he was responsible for the Inquisition. However, it is also likely that opposition who are more extreme in Iran are trying to get rid of Ahmadinejad by accusing him of being Jewish and saying his name is Jewish. It may or may not be. He has favored reforms like lifting dress codes and playing music that the hardliners do not favor. Ultranationalists also accuse leaders in Turkey of being Jewish in an effort to get rid of them; the only trouble is that Jewish leaders always swallow this crap and shoot themselves in the foot because antisemites are always looking for a conspiracy.

So whats new, if most people dug back far enough in their history, they will also find they have descendents who were Jews, or at the very least, Hebrews.

Sabourjian has the unmistakable ring of an Armenian name, not Jewish. The vast majority (nearly all) names ending with 'jian' are Armenian names; the 'ji' in the '...jian' is the adjective denoting a trade both in Armenian and Turkish

I can understand the Daily Telegraph, but Haaretz carrying such nonsense? Sabourjian is clearly an Armenian name. And what Jewish family would give their son the first name Mahmoud? Give us a break! This is similar to equally dumb stories about Hitler having been Jewish. For some reason such nonsense fascinates people but one would expect a respectable newspaper to use some discretion.

After the Holocaust, the same rumors surfaced about the Ayatollah hero, Hitler.The Jew haters, to mitigate the Nazi genocide, tried to spread rumors that Hitler had Jewish ancestry and went to the extent he did just to hide it. Ahmadinejad is simply a radical Muslim following his interpretation of the Quran. Just like Hitler was a Roman Catholic who, under the advice of Pope Pius XII, followed their definition of Catholicism!

This is hilarious. I hope Press TV picks this little gem up.

I am fairly certain that Sabourjian is in fact an Armenian name. And as far as I know there are no Armenian Jews. So, if Ahmadinedjad is indeed a Sabourjian and if he is indeed trying to distance himself with his past, it would be a Christian past, not a Jewish one.

Or this could be a another way to compare him to Hitler, whom reports indicate was the bastard child of Jewish burgher and his country-girl, Christian housemaid. For those who liken Ahmadinejad to the Nazi leader, it is yet another possible parallel. For those who who seek to undermine him at home, what better way than to make him less than fully Persian (and a Jew, nonetheless!). For psychobabblers, its an explanation other than pure evil. And so it goes...

in northern Iraq and must oversee Hamas and Hezbollah activities against Israel.He certainly has no time to worry about his background right now.All he wants is peace in ME and Iraq.

If this is true, for the first time, we may see him not smiling. He must really be pissed off now.perhaps the Iranians will kick him out for hiding the truth from them. Wonder where he will go for security and acceptance? Probably israel will take him in and give up 2000 terrorists to save another jew.

So what if all anti semitic scoudrels had Jewish ancestors, the harm they do is still unredeemable. But it might just trigger some self doubt in him and his followers, and get back to the basic Moslem-Hebraic-Christian universal principle, all men are brothers.

well, does it matter? Hitler also had Jewish roots as did Torquemada. Although neither one of these two was able to destroy the Jewish people or Judaism, we need to develop policy that will ensure that this tyrant does not succeed the way Hitler and Torquemada did in causing destruction, genocide, and world calamity. I am sure that some loonies inclined to conspiracy theories will argue now that the Iranian dictator, by virtue of his seemingly Jewish ancestry, is a Mossad or CIA agent... Do not worry, Hezbollah and other terrorist groups will keep receiving his massive support.

What do you want to gain with this? this is nonsense.

Actually, ahmadinejads name on his original birthcertificate is antarinejad, which means one whose family tree goes back to monkies. Antar means monkey in persian.If you look at his pictures you will see his strong resemblance to a monkey, that is his ancesters.

How else can you explain white-skinned people from eastern Europe and black-skinned folks from Africa both claiming to be Jewish?

...many palestinian families are from jewish origin, and they are the true owners of the land, not those imported from all over the world.

Conversion to Islam, forced and otherwise, has long been common in the Mid East. In Israel many Arabs and Bedouin have surnames commonly known as Jewish surnames. In Jordan there is even a large family clan called Cohen. With the Arab/Islamic conquest of 7th century Israel, many of the Jews in the cities were ethnically cleansed, expelled. But many remained, in the hills of Judea, Samaria and elsewhere and converted to Islam (mass forced conversions to Islam are recorded in Israel's history). Many converted so as not to be second class citizens under Muslim rule, and so they would not lose their land - which they apparently loved more than their faith. Many Muslims in Israel are aware of their Jewish roots (over 50%, some say). Some admit this knowledge while most are too scared to. What we have here seems more and more a tragic case of mistaken identity - not cousin against cousin, but brother against brother. This video details it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AenISgolLe0

Has the time come to finally embrace your "lost brother"...??? In the end he might only be longing for some real love...:)

No, no, no, he is not ours, you can have him!

his mother had sex with a rat. Now THAT would explain a lot of things