Iran’s vice president accuses Jews of dealing drugs and killing babies in a public speech

Iran's vice president made a controversial, anti-Semitic speech at an anti-drug conference, the Agence France-Presse reported.  

In the speech, Vice President Mohammad-Reza Rahimi said that the Talmud teaches Jews  to “destroy everyone who opposes the Jews" and claimed that "Zionists" control the illegal drug trade. Rahimi, who is next in line to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, also said that Zionists have a history of ordering gynecologists to kill black babies, the New York Times reported. 

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Needless to say, Rahimi's wild accusations left many people at the conference scratching their heads. “This was definitely one of the worst speeches I have heard in my life," a European diplomat told the Times. "My gut reaction was: why are we supporting any cooperation with these people?”

Rahimi was speaking at the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking in Tehran, which was attended by many Western and Israeli diplomats. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman compared the speech to Nazi propaganda:  "Hitler said crazy things too – and he was able to execute his plan," Lieberman told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 

Rahimi's speech also highlights recent tensions between Iran and Israel over Tehran's nuclear program, Reuters reported. After another round of nuclear talks with Iran ended in a stalemate 10 days ago, Israel recently made veiled threats of military action against Iran's nuclear production sites. While Iran and Israel often trade hostile words, Rahimi's recent speech was "unusually inflammatory," according to Reuters.