Mr Bagel: Karnit Goldwasser confronts Ahmadinejad

Wednesday, 26 September 2007

Karnit Goldwasser confronts Ahmadinejad

Goldwasser takes Ahmadinejad to task

The wife of one of the IDF soldiers kidnapped by Hizbullah last summer infiltrated a UN press conference with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Tuesday to demand information on her husband.

"Why are you not allowing the Red Cross to visit them?" Karnit Goldwasser asked of her husband Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, who was kidnapped with him. When Ahmadinejad didn't respond to her questioning, despite her having been called on by the moderator, she asked, "How come you're not answering me?"

Right before Goldwasser's question, Ahmadinejad refused to answer a question from Channel 10 correspondent Gil Tamari. Tamari asked whether Iran was concerned that Israel might take an action similar to the one it took last week, in which the IAF allegedly bombed a possible nuclear site in Syria. Ahmadinejad simply said, "Next question."

When another reporter asked a question seeking clarity on whether the Iranian president recognized Israel or wanted to destroy it, he asked for the journalist's news outlet before responding. Told that it was a Fox News reporter, he declined to address the question directly, but did eventually ask, rhetorically, "The Soviet Union, where is it now? It failed. It disappeared. Was it done through war? No." He also reiterated his support for the Palestinians' right to self-determination, as well as earlier calls he has made for a Palestinian referendum.

Later, when a different reporter asked a similar question, Ahmadinejad replied, "They really want to hurt us, but with the support of God, they won't be able to harm the Iranian nation."

Mr Bagel: The bravery and loyality of Ehud Goldwasser's wife is inspiational.

References:
JPost: Goldwasser takes Ahmadinejad to task