UPDATE
Thank you to The Independent for promptly amending the first article in question. The paragraph now reads:
The Independent’s coverage of Al Quds Day demonstrations in Iran whitewashes Iranian anti-Semitism and extremism, and calls President Hassan Rouhani a “moderate.”
Al Quds Day, as HR has explained, was founded by Iran’s leaders as a day to show support for Palestinians, reaffirm the Muslim connection to Jerusalem – and also to call for Israel’s destruction.
The Independent reports on the crowds chanting “death to Israel” and a digital countdown to the “destruction of Israel,” and then attempts to explains the reason for this:
President Hassan Rouhani and Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani were amongst the officials who attended the demonstration.
In a speech to marching people who were going to Friday prayers at the Tehran University grounds, Iranian Tasnim News Agency reports Mr Larijani said: “Israel is the most malignant terrorist in history. “[Israel is the] mother of terrorism,” he added.
Iran is fiercely critical of the country for its alleged human rights violations, and President Rouhani told the IRNA news agency that Israel supports “terrorists in the region.”
But The Independent is paraphrasing here. In fact Iran isn’t opposed to Israel for “alleged human rights violations.” It is opposed to Israel’s very existence as a state, and supports terror groups that murder Jews including Hamas and Hezbollah.
In another article on the demonstrations, The Independent refers to “newly re-elected moderate President Hassan Rouhani.” Rouhani is no “moderate.” He has called for public executions and is the president of a regime that is the leading state sponsor of terrorism. As the Telegraph reported:
Since the “moderate” Rouhani took office in 2013, Iran has embarked on what Amnesty International calls “a staggering execution spree”, giving it the highest per capita state-killing rate in the world. The targets for murder and imprisonment include journalists, Christians and anyone who can be viewed as a political or religious dissident – in obedience, as Rouhani said in 2014, to “God’s commandments.
As Peyvand Khorsandi explains:
You can’t be a moderate in Iran. Protecting the sanctity of the Islamic Republic’s founding Khomeini-ist principles, and its resulting injustices, is your raison d’etre and if you’re not up to the task, you’re dead.
HonestReporting has contacted The Independent and you can add your voice by sending an email to [email protected]
