Iran's Ahmadinejad Survives Grenade Attack

[Large Sarge]

Iran's Ahmadinejad Survives Grenade Attack
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 08/04/2010 04:30 -0500

Iran MSNBC


Associated Press reports: "A handmade grenade exploded Wednesday near President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's convoy in western Iran, but the leader was not harmed, a conservative website reported." We are trying to determine just how this news will be spun to push the red futures (probably the first day in two weeks futures have been negative, and one of several times in the past two months this has happened) back into the green.

From AP, via MSNBC:

TEHRAN, Iran — A handmade grenade exploded Wednesday near President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's convoy in western Iran, but the leader was not harmed, a conservative website reported.

The website, khabaronline.ir, said the blast took place in Hamedan as Ahmadinejad was on his way to address a crowd. The president gave his speech as planned and it was broadcast live on state TV.

One person was arrested in connection with the attack, the report said, adding that the president's car was about 100 yards (meter) away from the site of the blast.

The website said it had no information about whether other people were injured.

"The explosion caused a lot of smoke," it said.

Officials could not immediately be reached to confirm the report.

[DMac]

An Ahmadinejad murder will go over as well as when Archduke Ferdinand was killed.

[MNeagle]

Iranian media say president's convoy attacked

TEHRAN, Iran – A conservative Iranian website said President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad escaped an assassination attempt after a handmade grenade exploded near his convoy on Wednesday, but Tehran state TV denied the report.

Other media reported an explosion in the area but gave conflicting accounts about the cause. Some said it was a firecracker.

The website, khabaronline.ir, said the grenade detonated near Ahmadinejad's convoy as he was on his way to address a crowd in the western Iranian town of Hamedan but did not harm him.

The president later gave his speech as planned, and it was broadcast live on state television. He made no mention of the attack in his remarks, focusing instead on the country's disputed nuclear program.

He struck a hard line against Western demands that Iran halt its nuclear activities. The U.S. and its allies accuse Iran of trying to develop atomic weapons, but Tehran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

"It will be one of your big mistakes if you think you, resorting to lies and hue and cry, are able to achieve something and we will give you any concession," Ahmadinejad told the crowd at the Hamedan stadium.

One person was arrested in connection with the attack, the website report said, adding that Ahmadinejad's car was about 100 yards (meters) from the blast. It also said there was no information whether anyone was injured.

"The explosion caused a lot of smoke," the report said.

Iran's state-run Press TV, the government's main English-language broadcast arm, said an informed source in Ahmadinejad's office vehemently denied the allegation, insisting "no such attack had happened."

Ahmadinejad, whose popularity at home is waning amid a faltering economy and tightened U.N. and Western sanctions over Tehran's nuclear program, regularly tours the countryside to deliver speeches to grassroot supporters in cities and town across Iran.

Several media outlets differed in the details about what happened.

The semiofficial Fars news agency said a handmade grenade was thrown at the path where the president and his entourage had been but only after they had left the site. Fars said the explosion disturbed people at the site.

The government-owned Borna news agency said somebody threw a firecracker after the convoy had passed, while the semiofficial Mehr news agency called it a handmade percussion grenade.

A photo by the semiofficial Isna news agency showed smoke dozens of yards away from the convoy, which was surrounded by people. It did not elaborate on the source of the smoke.

Hamedan, 200 miles (340 kilometers) west of Tehran, is not known as a restive area, but it is close to Kurdish area of Iran that has witnessed occasional clashes between Kurdish rebels and security forces over the past years.

Ahmadinejad also said Monday during a speech that Israel had sent agents to assassinate him, but he gave no details.

The accusation came a day after another conservative Iranian website, Mashreghnews.ir, reported that security forces had detained a terrorist group in Tehran that planned to assassinate officials. It linked the group to Kurdish separatists.

In May, Ahmadinejad was jeered by a crowd demanding jobs when he was speaking during a similar visit to the southern Iranian town of Khorramshahr.

In 2005, bandits reportedly killed a bodyguard of Ahmadinejad during his visit to restive Sistan-Baluchistan province in southeastern Iran. However, the president had left the province before the attack occurred.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/ml_iran_attack

[mightymanx]

An Ahmadinejad murder will go over as well as when Archduke Ferdinand was killed.



I was thinking that as well, straight out of the WW1 playbook.

Hell if TPTB are going to start another war can't they at least be original?

[AndreaGail]

Iranian media say president's convoy attacked
but Tehran state TV denied the report.



http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/ml_iran_attack


I love how the msm always has to stress how it is state tv

trying to insinuate how our airwaves are so much freer and void of government talking points ::)

[AndreaGail]

An Ahmadinejad murder will go over as well as when Archduke Ferdinand was killed.



that thought popped into my head as well when i saw the headline

[Ponce]

100 yards away?........not worth mention it.

[Ironfield]

An Ahmadinejad murder will go over as well as when Archduke Ferdinand was killed.



I was thinking that as well, straight out of the WW1 playbook.

Hell if TPTB are going to start another war can't they at least be original?


Why would they change a formula that works?

the drums of war seem to be beating even louder in these past few months, I just don't know what the tipping point will be.

-Ironfield