Iran report of Holocaust-style badges questioned
2006-05-19 09:06:12
The National Post is sending shockwaves across the country this morning with a report that Iran's Parliament has passed a law requiring mandatory Holocaust style badges to identify Jews and Christians.
But independent reporter Meir Javdanfar, an Israeli Middle East expert who was born and raised in Tehran, says the report is false.Meanwhile, another report on the authenticity of the story comes from Amir Taheri, an Iranian author of ten books on the Middle East and Islam:
"It's absolutely factually incorrect," he told The New 940 Montreal.
"Nowhere in the law is there any talk of Jews and Christians having to wear different colours. I've checked it with sources both inside Iran and outside."
"The Iranian people would never stand for it. The Iranian government wouldn't be stupid enough to do it."
Political commentator and 940 Montreal host Beryl Waysman says the report is true, that the law was passed two years ago.
"Jews should wear yellow strips, Christians red strips, because according to the Iranian mullahs, if a Mulsim shakes hands with a non-Muslim he becomes unclean."
AllahPundit discusses the back and forth of the story--he thinks it's true based on Taheri's credentials--at Hot Air.While the Iranian economy appears to be heading for recession, one sector may have some reason for optimism. That sector is the garment industry and the reason for hopefulness is a law passed by the Islamic Majlis (parliament) on Monday.
The law mandates the government to make sure that all Iranians wear "standard Islamic garments" designed to remove ethnic and class distinctions reflected in clothing, and to eliminate "the influence of the infidel" on the way Iranians, especially, the young dress. It also envisages separate dress codes for religious minorities, Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians, who will have to adopt distinct colour schemes to make them identifiable in public. The new codes would enable Muslims to easily recognize non-Muslims so that they can avoid shaking hands with them by mistake, and thus becoming najis (unclean).
The new law, drafted during the presidency of Muhammad Khatami in 2004, had been blocked within the Majlis. That blockage, however, has been removed under pressure from Khatami's successor, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Update 5/20:
The source for the latest on the story and how it is playing out continues to be Allahpundit at Hot Air.
Among the repurcussions of the apparently erroneous report:
- Rabbi Marvin Hier of the Wiesenthal Institute has written a letter to Kofi Annan for clarification of the story.
- The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations has issued a statement indicating that although the story is unsubstantiated, it is indicative of a dangerous situation
- There is a post at left-wing Daily Kos claiming that the story is a set-up by Conservatives to support an attack on Iran
- See also: Iran Wants To Renew The Yellow Badge Enforced Under Islam and Nazis
- See also: Iran's History With The Yellow Badge
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