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Holocaust denier Ahmadinejad registers to become Iran’s president again

During his former presidency, Ahmadinejad made threats to destroy Israel and denied the Holocaust. 

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a Holocaust denier and former Iranian president who is controversial globally and within Iran, has registered for elections to replace Ebrahim Raisi.

Ahmadinejad was president between 2005 and 2013 and was known for his threats against Israel, Holocaust denial, and enthusiasm for developing a nuclear bomb.

Ahmadinejad attempted to run for Iran’s Presidency in 2021 but was barred by a 12 member council, although he has registered to run in the upcoming elections on June 28.

The populist has rankled the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has described Ahmadinejad’s proposed candidacy in earlier elections as a“polarized situation” that would be “harmful for the country.”

A senior figure in Khamenei’s inner circle has also registered for the June 28 election.

Vahid Haghanian, a former commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Council who is under US sanctions, is reportedly Khamenei’s favorite to secure the presidency.

Despite the controversy he has created within Iran, Ahmadinejad has gained popularity through social media and has vowed to combat corruption. However, his own administration faced graft charges and prison terms for two of his vice presidents.

The dispute over the 2009 re-election led to massive “Green Movement” protests that resulted in hundreds imprisoned and dozens killed.

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The June 28th election comes after the sudden death of Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter accident last month.

In 2019, Ahmadinejad attempted to walk back his antisemitism in press interviews.

Ahmadinejad told Israel-based reporter Samuel Thrope that he was opposed to Israeli policies and not motivated by hatred of Jews.

“If you mean Judaism as a religion, as a culture, how can a person oppose a religion, a culture, or an ethnicity?” Ahmadinejad said. “I’m opposed to actions that violate the rights of others; it makes no difference who does them.”

“You’re Jewish, and I’m Muslim, and we’re talking. Are we fighting? Are we at war?” Ahmadinejad told the interviewer.

However, the interviewer noted that Ahmadinejad wouldn’t renounce his earlier anti-Semitic statements. As president, Ahmadinejad displayed “bald anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial,” Thrope writes.

During his presidency, he called for the destruction of Israel.

In 2006, at the “International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust,” prominent Holocaust deniers were brought to Tehran, including former Klu Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke.