who makes the rules

Iran president in war charges call
news.scotsman.com
Sat 26 Nov 2005
Press Association Ltd

Iran president in war charges call Iran's hard-line president has called for the Bush administration to be tried on war crimes charges related to Iraq and denounced the West for its stance on Iran's controversial nuclear programme.

"You, who have used nuclear weapons against innocent people, who have used uranium ordnance in Iraq should be tried as war criminals in courts," Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in an apparent reference to the US.

Ahmadinejad didn't elaborate, but he was apparently referring to the US military's use of artillery shells packed with depleted uranium, which is far less radioactive than natural uranium and is left over from the process of enriching uranium for use as nuclear fuel.

Since the 2003 start of the Iraq war, US forces have reportedly fired at least 120 tons of shells packed with depleted uranium, an extremely dense material used by the US and British militaries for tank armour and armour-piercing weapons. Once fired, the shells melt, vaporise and turn to dust.

"Who in the world are you to accuse Iran of suspicious nuclear armed activity?" asked the Iranian president during a nationally televised ceremony marking the 36th anniversary of the establishment of the volunteer Basij paramilitary force.

Iran has been under intense pressure to curb its nuclear programme, which the US claims is part of an effort to produce nuclear weapons. Iran denies such claims and says its nuclear programme is peaceful and aimed at generating electricity. But it insists that it has the right to develop its nuclear programme, including enrichment of nuclear fuel.

On Thursday, the 35-board members of the International Atomic Energy Agency met on Iran's nuclear file after the US and Europe warned of UN Security Council action, accusing Iran of having documents that show how to produce parts of nuclear warheads.

Iran has temporarily stopped its enrichment programme, but negotiations between it and Britain, France and Germany broke off in August after Tehran unfroze another part of its programme - the conversion of raw uranium into the gas that is used as the feeder stock in enrichment.

Iran has also rejected European calls to halt work at its uranium conversion facility near city of Isfahan in central Iran.

Ahmadinejad rejected Western concerns over his country's nuclear programme.