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Miraflores Palace via AFP - Getty Images
Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad greets Elena FrÃas during the state funeral of her son, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, in Caracas, Venezuela, on March 8.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad may have endeared himself to much of Latin America with his performance at the funeral of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, but minders of religious righteousness in his home country were unamused.
His sin — unfortunately for him captured in a photograph — transpired when he came cheek to cheek with a grieving Elena Frias, the mother of the late president, while clasping her hands. In strict Islamic societies, people are not supposed to touch others of the opposite gender unless they are related or married.
The image sparked a storm of controversy in the Iranian press, according to the English-language Iran Pulse, and went viral on Twitter and Facebook as users joked about it or speculated about how the conservative Islamic clerics back in Tehran would respond.
Their answer was swift and certain.
"In relation to what is allowed (halal) and what is forbidden (haram) we know that no unrelated women can be touched unless she is drowning at sea or needs (medical) treatment," said Hojat al-Islam Hossein Ibrahimi, member of the Society of Militant Clergy of Tehran, according to the Iran Pulse report.
Ahmadinejad was already under scrutiny by the conservative clerics who call the shots in Iran, and apparently they did not like the eulogy he gave for Chavez at the memorial ceremony.
They said it was another sign that a "deviant current" was driving the president a greater distance from the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
During the eulogy, Ahmadinejad said that Chavez "will come again along with Jesus Christ and Al-Imam al-Mahdi to redeem mankind,” putting the populist Venezuelan president and ex-paratrooper in the ranks of holy figures.
Mohammed Dehghan, a member of the Iranian parliament, called for religious scholars to confront Ahmadinejad’s "un-Islamic" acts, Al-Arabiya reported.
Some Shiite religious figures admonished the Iranian president to become better educated about his religion. Others urged him not to make religious references for the rest of his campaign for re-election, while his supporters said the whole uproar was a part of a smear campaign.
A second controversial photograph surfaced that appeared to be of Ahmadinejad attending the funeral in Caracas last week, but it turned out to be a fake that amateurishly Photoshopped the Iranian president in a cheek-to-cheek moment with the former director-general of the U.N. nuclear watchdog, Egyptian Mohamed ElBaradei.
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ahmad should leave the kissy huggy up to sean penn
So will Iran issue a Fatwa to get Chavez's mother? Isn't a man's indiscretions usually the woman's fault?
What can I say? Absurdity on absurdity.
This could get ugly.
The Ayatollah is just Kock-blocking!
Yep. He's geared up like a hockey goalie makin' saves!
Bow chica bow now. You go Iranian dude! Get some cheek.
Yet another example of what a pathetic pig-headed religion Islam is.
Hello LM-2418400... English is clearly not your first language. If you reread that sentence you will find that it is correct. Even if I had made a grammatical error--it has happened in my 20-some years as a journalist--I wonder why you find it so fun to point it out. Do you mock all humans who err, or is it just journalists?
Kari, Kari, Kari. Your skin appears to be just a little too thin. Oops, I offended you. Sorry.
Kari, although none of this applies to this particular story, you must admit, there are some amateurish writers, truly clueless headline writers, and some copy editors who would make a sixth grader blush, hanging around the NBCNews site. However, LM's specific focus on NBC writers tends to indicate that he/she is a lost Fox fan.
Kari Haus,You're doing a great job.Those that look for every little bitty error are usually unhappy people.I love your news articles.Journalism class was my favorite in high school.
Not offended. Just bored with self-righteous comments. It's so great when the conversation is more... elevated. Of course, you're right that a lot of journalism is not particularly elevated either. :)
Islam is for idiots.
I don't normally dis any ones religion but this is totally absurd.
So, I guess he will be stoned or put to death when he returns?
About right.
Stone the bastrd....chop off his worthless head....Make him go to a Justine Bieber Concert or Lindsay Lohan flic.
I wonder how Islam handles ORPHANS?
How does Islam handle ORPHANS?
You're not related to them by blood... You can't touch 'em.
Oh, let me guess... there's a ceremony, and oath, prick fingers, etc... then *POOF* you can touch 'em. You create one more exception... without a point.
Oh, but I'm sure you just prostitute young girl orphans and/or make them sex slaves that are held away from your 3 wives back at home. Oh and please don't start telling me that there is no prostitution engaged by Muslims in Islamic countries...
I think the part you're missing here is that this rule applies to women, not children.
Prostitution is illegal almost everywhere, in most cultures - and it's rampant everywhere, in all cultures. If you live in a city (in North America) with a population over, say... 100,000... I bet you'll find prostitutes without much effort at all - whether it's allowed or not.
It's shocking that Ahmadinejad has more common sense and social graces than Iranian clerics.
He just asked her if she can find him a camel ..... Nothing else !
Wonder if when he got back to Iran and was done getting ripped a new one for comforting the mother he thought "you know this religious militancy that runs this country is really messed up!"
Ya know, they really are related and the Iranian clerics should back off. Hugo was a political huckster, would be terrorist and full time dictator. That puts him in the same family as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
They are brothers! So what's the problem!
Hey, kristentaylor, take your spam off here and go to Iran with Ahmanutjob!
As for what relates to this article I have to agree with some of the other comments, that being that any form of religion, taken to the extreme, is totally (and fundamentally) crazy!
I love the part about a "smear campaign".
One thing Iran does is show the world that a president does not run a country.
They openly show it.
In the US is is downplayed.
Ask Obama if he runs America.
Of course, he will lie as usual.
Good riddance buttwipe..Abamabood or whatever your name is your next..an even bigger buttwipe
Hope the soon to be next president of Iran has a name that is easier to spell than Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
I simplified it for him.
I call him Almondine.
After all, he IS a nut.
I once heard that it was properly translated as "I'm An Idiot".
I think your translation is correct.
Kari might want to start watching the World News on Al Jareeza and catch up on how the World has changed in the last 50 years. Let's see the Grand Ayatollah has changed alot of pass laws but the US Media loves to made the Middle East look bad. The new USA policy that Rape is God's blessing and that speaks volumes.
"people are not supposed to touch others of the opposite gender unless they are related or married."
Sounds like the GOTP.
This just proves how stupid and inhumane that these animals are. We should just wipe them off the map along with the rest of the sadists. These people are just pure EVIL.
Off with his head.
We are all descendents of Lucy.....
YOU might be.
Monkeys are still around and they are not evolving.
You are to,Grasshopper..That is a fact....'Good Night...
Facts are something you can prove right now.
Yup !!!
Noooooo Comment
Too bad it was not a double funeral.