Nuremberg Protest Over Iran Visit

Nuremberg protest over Iran visit
By Ray Furlong
BBC News, Nuremberg
Demonstrations are due to take place in Nuremberg on Sunday ahead of a World Cup match in which Iran faces Mexico. The Iranian vice-president is attending the match and protests have been announced by the local Jewish community as well as Iranian exile groups.
One of the biggest fears the Germans have for the World Cup is that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will come here to watch his team play.
His comments casting doubt on the Holocaust caused outrage in Germany.
This match is serving as a focus for protests against him, even though he is only sent his deputy, Vice-President Mohammed Aliabadi.
Historical reference
Nuremberg is where the Nazis promulgated their infamous race laws and the head of the German Jewish community has declared that the Iranian president is “a second Hitler”.
Another leading member of the community said this demonstration would also be a protest against the proposals made for resolving the dispute over Iran’s nuclear programme, which he described as latter-day appeasement.
The protest will also be supported with speeches by important German politicians such as the interior minister of Bavaria and the leader of the Green Party.
And with exile Iranian opposition groups planning a separate demonstration, the authorities are deploying extra police to ensure security.