briefs

(U-WIRE) NEW YORK – Columbia University President Lee Bollinger blasted Mahmoud… (U-WIRE) NEW YORK – Columbia University President Lee Bollinger blasted Mahmoud Ahmadinejad during the Iranian President’s speech Monday. In turn, Ahmadinejad attacked Western interference with his nation’s policies.

During his remarks, Ahmadinejad clarified and defended his views on the Holocaust, declared that there was no homosexuality in Iran and denied that his country had ambitions of a nuclear weapons program.

But Bollinger set the tone for the event with his opening remarks, when he drew cheers from the crowd with his statement, “Mr. President, you exhibit all the signs of a petty and cruel dictator.”

Through a translator, Ahmadinejad rebuked Bollinger for his comments, calling them insulting and saying that guest speeches in his nation follow a certain decorum. “In Iran,” he said, “we don’t think it’s necessary before the speech is even given, to come in with a series of claims.”

After a rambling half-hour speech on the power of science and knowledge – and how it can be misused -Ahmadinejad fielded questions from students as delivered by John Coatsworth, interim dean of the School of International and Public Affairs.

Ahmadinejad spoke out against what he sees as 60 years of injustice for and victimization of the Palestinian people, calling for a free referendum.

“I am not saying that it [the Holocaust] did not happen at all. I am saying that – granted this happened – what does this have to do with the Palestinian people?” he asked, saying that Palestinians were displaced to make way for a Jewish state of Israel. He said that just as more research leads to changing perspectives in science, it is also valuable to continue reevaluating and studying historical events, including the Holocaust, saying, “There’s nothing known as absolute.”

Touching on modern international relations, Ahmadinejad condemned what he called the “monopoly of big powers.” He implied that foreign governments spread lies about Iran and denied that the nation suppresses women’s rights. He defended Iran’s laws and its use of execution, saying they are in the people’s best interest.

Responding to a question about homosexuality in Iran, Ahmanidejad said, “In Iran, we don’t have homosexuals like in your country,” a statement which drew laughter followed by boos. – By Tom Faure ‘ Melissa Repko, Columbia Daily Spectator

UNITED NATIONS – U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Monday that a 15-year international effort to stem global warming has not halted the buildup of greenhouse gas emissions and that governments must take “unprecedented action” to reverse the trend.

“Today, the time for doubt has passed,” Ban told delegates at a U.N. conference on climate change that brought together more than 80 heads of state, former Vice President Al Gore and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Ban organized Monday’s meeting to build political momentum for negotiations set for December in Bali, Indonesia, on a new treaty, which is expected to impose deep cuts on emissions of heat-trapping gases by industrial powers.

Ban stressed the urgency of reaching agreement on a plan of action that would replace the world’s principal climate accord, the Kyoto Protocol. The agreement, which the Bush administration opposes, expires at the end of 2012.

“Our goal must be nothing short of a real breakthrough,” Ban said. “Inaction now will prove the costliest action of all in the long term.”

Ban called on industrialized powers to show greater leadership in cutting emissions and said that poor countries will require incentives to lower emission levels “without sacrificing economic growth or poverty reduction.” Although Ban did not outline a specific proposal for emission caps, a senior U.N. adviser said that Ban believes a legally binding limit on industrial emissions is essential. – Colum Lynch, The Washington Post

KABUL, Afghanistan – Preying on a weak government and rising public concerns about security, the Taliban is enjoying a military resurgence in Afghanistan and is now staging attacks just outside the capital, according to Western diplomats, private security analysts and aid workers.

Of particular concern, private security and intelligence analysts said, is the new reach of the Taliban to the provinces ringing Kabul, headquarters for thousands of international security troops. Those troops are seeking to shore up the government of President Hamid Karzai, help stabilize the country, find Osama bin Laden and rebuild a nation deeply scarred by almost three decades of warfare. So far, they have had only mixed success.

“The Taliban ability to sustain fighting cells north and south of Kabul is an ominous development and a significant lapse in security,” said a recent analysis by NightWatch, an intelligence review written by John McCreary, a former top analyst at the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency.

While the number of attacks around the capital has been small compared with the number of attacks in other areas of the country, McCreary wrote, the data showed that the Taliban this summer “held the psychological initiative. They still lack the ability to threaten the government, but moved closer to achieving it than they have in six years.” – John Ward Anderson, The Washington Post