iran inviting ww3 to start

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has again made provocative statements about Israel, this time calling the J e w ish state "a rotten, dried tree that will be eliminated by one storm".

He has made the comments at the start of a three-day international conference in Tehran, where Islamic leaders are discussing how to raise funds for the new Hamas-led Palestinian Authority.

Mr Ahmadinejad has predicted that Israel will soon be "annihilated by a storm".

"Whether you like it or not, the Zionist regime is approaching its end," he said.

"The Zionist regime is a dying tree and soon its branches will all be broken down."

Funding call

Opening the conference, Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has called on Islamic nations to give all possible support to the Palestinian people and the new Government.

Ayatollah Khamenei has also lashed out at the United States and Israel.

"America, like a guardian, defends the rights of this occupying regime and the international treaties and agreements will be ignored," he said.

"This country even attacks the neighbouring countries like Egypt, Lebanon and Syria and even takes their land."

The Iranian President provoked an international outcry last year when he rejected the Holocaust and said Israel should be "wiped off the map".

- BBC/CNN

Dave R.