A German Jewish leader has called on Germany to break off all ties with Iran after the latest inflammatory remarks by the Iranian president. Paul Spiegel, president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, told the Netzeitung news agency that Chancellor Angela Merkel should sever ties with Iran after its president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, suggested that Germany and Austria create a Jewish state on their own territory. Ahmadinejad also cast doubt on the Holocaust. Though she did not respond directly to Spiegel’s remarks, Merkel called the remarks “completely unacceptable” and said she would not tolerate threats to Israel’s existence. She made the comments during a meeting Dec. 8 in Berlin with French Prime Minister Jaques Chirac, who joined her in condemning Ahmadinejad’s remarks.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
