What are we to make of this? Iran's ayatollahs have issued both fatwas for and against nuclear weapons in recent months, while the country's National Orchestra performs a Nuclear Energy Symphony. Is Ahmadinejad saying what he really thinks here? Or is this just intended for consumption by his useful idiots, no more real than his recent transparently bogus disavowal of anti-Semitism? From BBC Monitoring (not online), Sept. 21:

Text of report by Iranian TV news channel on 21 September
Addressing a press conference in New York on Thursday 21 September, President Ahmadinezhad said days of atomic bomb are over. He said: "We do not need atomic bombs. Some mistakenly think that the atomic bomb is effective in today's relations. They make a mistake. The days of Atomic bomb are over. All the nuclear arsenals are of no use to anyone. They should spend money to dispose of them. If atomic bomb could save, it would save Russia from disintegration. If atomic bomb could restore security, it could prevent the September 11 incident. If Atomic bomb could do anything, it would prevent the Palestinian intifadah. This is the time for thinking, for reflection. Besides, we are Muslims and based on the order from our leader whose leadership is a religious one, any move toward the nuclear weapon is prohibited. No one is allowed to mover in this direction. This is a political issue. And those politicians who follow up this issue know this."

Source: Islamic Republic of Iran News Network, Tehran, in Persian

See our last post on Iran.