UN Chief Slams Holocaust Denial at Iran Summit

The US and Israel weren't happy about the chief of the UN attending the Nonaligned Movement Summit in Iran, but that might change now that Ban Ki-moon has told Mahmoud Ahmadinejad off on his home turf. In a speech to the 120-nation summit, Ban strongly condemned Holocaust denial and suggestions that Israel has no right to exist, CNN reports. He did not mention the Iranian regime specifically, but there was no doubt that he was addressing controversial remarks made by the Iranian leader.

"I strongly reject threats by any member state to destroy another or outrageous attempts to deny historical facts, such as the Holocaust," Ban said. "Claiming that another UN member state, Israel, does not have the right to exist, or describing it in racist terms, is not only utterly wrong but undermines the very principles we have all pledged to uphold." Click here for more on the summit, including the reason why the Syrian delegation stormed out yesterday. (More Ban Ki-moon stories.)