Iranian leader says he opposes Israel, not Israelis

The Iranian president, Mohamoud Ahmadinejad, took the unusual step on Thursday of explaining that while he strongly opposed the state of Israel, his hostility did not extend to the Israeli people.

"We have no problem with people and nations," he said. "Of course we do not recognize a government or a nation for the Zionist regime."

Ahmadinejad has long been seen as a threat to Israel, especially since he angered the West and Jews worldwide in 2005 when he repeated a slogan from the early days of the revolution, saying "Israel should be wiped off the map."

But on Thursday, he defended his vice president for tourism, Esfandiar Rahim Mashai, who created a storm of protest among legislators and senior clerics over the summer when he said that Iran was a friend of the Israeli people... Iht

May I remind Mr Ahmadinejad that the Zionist regime is elected by Israelis...