Iran Jews Express Holocaust Shock

Iran - The chairman of the Jewish Council has strongly criticised the country's hardline president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for saying the Holocaust was a myth.
In a letter to the president, Haroun Yashayaei said the leader's remarks had shocked the international community and caused fear in Iran's Jewish community.
In his strongly-worded letter, Mr Yashayaei asked the president how he could justify what he termed the crimes of Hitler.
Mr Yashayaei said the Holocaust was a fact of history and not a myth and accused the Iranian president of ignorance and political prejudice.

This is the first time that a senior Iranian Jewish leader has openly criticised President Ahmadinejad for denying the Holocaust.
Iran's small Jewish community of about 30,000 is recognised by the Islamic Republic and there is even a Jewish member of parliament, they normally do not interfere in political issues and often support the country's stance on the Arab-Israeli conflict.

In a gesture of loyalty to the Islamic Republic, Mr Yashayaei told the Iranian president that his comments on the Holocaust were even against the teachings of the leader of the Iranian revolution, Ayatollah Khamenei.