Social Media Users Mock Iranian President Rouhani’s Rosh Hashanah Greetings
by Shiryn Ghermezian
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani posted a Rosh Hashanah greeting on Twitter. Photo: Wikipedia.
Twitter users ridiculed Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday, after he posted a conciliatory message wishing Jews well for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, celebrated on Monday and Tuesday this week.
“May our shared Abrahamic roots deepen respect & bring peace & mutual understanding. L’Shanah Tovah. #RoshHashanah,” the Iranian leader wrote on his Twitter page. The message was accompanied by a photo of four Jewish men wearing prayer shawls and holding prayer books while standing near a Torah scroll.
Yair Rosenberg, a journalist for Jewish magazine Tablet, was quick to point out the inherent hypocrisy in Rouhani’s greeting:
Every year, Rouhani tweets Rosh Hashana greetings. And every year, Iran relegates Jews to second class status & blocks Holocaust web sites.
— Yair Rosenberg (@Yair_Rosenberg) September 13, 2015
Former British Member of Parliament Louise Mensch said the invocation of the patriarch Abraham in itself was offensive:
.@HassanRouhani When you stop hanging men for being gay and women for being raped you can dare to pronounce the name of Abraham
— Louise Mensch (@LouiseMensch) September 13, 2015
A number of other social media users pointed out that for most Jews, the Iranian regime’s constant threats to destroy Israel would likely not be considered peaceful. Human rights lawyer Arsen Ostrovsky asked if the Iranian leader also hoped for the new year to bring harm to the Jewish state:
And ‘Death to Israel’? #Iran https://t.co/HrHPlvVfFw
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) September 13, 2015
Others who commented on Rouhani’s post said his sentiments were simply unbelievable. One Twitter user wrote, “It might be easier to believe you if your Supreme Leader [Ayatollah Ali Khamenei] didn’t call for Israel’s eradication.” Another tweeted, “Sir, no amount of good will tweets can erase your boss’s antisemitic and Israel intentions.” Yet another called on Rouhani to heed his own message and put a stop to his regime’s threats against its neighbor to the west:
@HassanRouhani @TheIsraelink If U truly feel that way, then U should understand Israel is the Homeland of the Jewish people & stop threats!
— Haya Eytan (@TeachESL) September 13, 2015
