IRAN: Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad condemns the attacks on Lebanon and says that Iran will not give its nuclear programme.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Tuesday (August 15) Iran would not yield to Western pressure to give up its home-grown nuclear technology. Ahmadinejad told a crowd of supporters at a rally in the north-western city of Ardebil that the U.S Britain and Israel should all be put on trial for the war in Lebanon. "Those states (U.S and Britain) which were involved in and supported Israeli savage attacks on Lebanon and were opposed to an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon are associates of Israeli offensive and should be put on trial." He also used the event, which was showed on state television, to reiterate Iran's right to develop nuclear power. " We (Iran's government) have duty to defend our legitimate nuclear right, no Iranian person has the right to retreat an iota from Iranian nation's nuclear right," he said. His comments came days before an August 22 deadline Iran set itself to respond to a demand by six world powers that Tehran give up uranium enrichment in return for economic and other incentives. Iran has so far shown no signs it will accept. The United States, China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany proposed in June to give Iran trade and technical incentives if Tehran halted all enrichment-related activities. However, August 22 Iranian deadline was deemed to far off, so the Security Council passed a resolution demanding Tehran halt the sensitive atomic work by August 31 or face possible sanctions. Western diplomats have said they are ready to talk but only after Iran meets the key demand of stopping enrichment, a process which can be used to make fuel for nuclear power stations or material for atomic bombs. Under Iran's system of clerical rule, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has the last say on state matters not the president. Khamenei has also previously said Iran would not yield to pressure.

ITN Source | August 16, 2006

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