In a letter to organizers of a rally protesting Ahmadinejad’s visit to New York, Senator Clinton underscored the need to deny Iran nuclear weapons and stand firmly with Israel.

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To Members of the National Coalition to Stop Iran Now along with the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations, Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, United Jewish Communities, UJA-Federation of New York, and Jewish Council for Public Affairs:

As thousands gather in New York today to stand united against the threat posed by Iran, I add my voice to all those speaking out to oppose the Iranian regime’s support for global terror, pursuit of nuclear weapons, and abuse of human rights. As Iranian President Ahmadinejad travels to New York, once again using the General Assembly of the United Nations as the stage for his hateful propaganda against Israel and the United States, we must be clear and steadfast in our opposition to the message he carries, and the threat a nuclear-armed Iran would pose.

As we know too well, the President of Iran has made a series of incendiary, outrageous comments, questioning the Holocaust and calling for Israel to be wiped off the map. Israel’s right to exist – and exist in safety and peace – must never be called in to question. To deny the Holocaust places the President of Iran in the company of the most despicable bigots and historical revisionists. He has also said “The big powers are going down… a world without America and Israel is both possible and feasible.”

President Ahmadinejad’s despicable comments and support for terrorism are even more disturbing in the context of the regime’s quest to acquire nuclear weapons. His anti-American, anti-Israeli rhetoric underscores the seriousness of the threat. Indeed, the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) recently found that Iran is making significant progress on developing and operating its centrifuges necessary to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons, and that Iran continues to resist efforts to address substantively its alleged nuclear weapons-related work. United States policy in this regard must be clear and unequivocal. We should not, cannot, must not permit Iran to build or acquire nuclear weapons. In dealing with this threat, as I have said repeatedly, we must take no option off the table.

We must continue to keep the spotlight on Iran until it ends its anti-American and anti-Semitic policies of hate, ends its nuclear weapons program, and its sponsorship of terrorism. I commend all of those joining today to oppose the Iranian regime’s policies and statements during President Ahmadinejad’s visit.

Sincerely,

Hillary Rodham Clinton

United States Senator