tv Piers Morgan Tonight CNN October 7, 2012 9:00pm-10:00pm PDT
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>> has your american dream changed? >> not at all. i'm living the american dream to be living the american dream. tonight my world exclusive with one of the most controversial leaders. what will your response be? >> some of the behaviors of the united states in our region encourages extremism. >> surprising? >> how would you feel if one of your children dates a jew? i asked him about basic human rights of gays.
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>> do you believe that some are born homosexual? >> i absolutely believe that. mr. president, welcome to new york. many americans see you as public en enny enemy number one. >> translator: good morning to you. i wish to greet all the wonderful people of the united states and all of the people who will see your programming at the end of the day, if you do have personal animosity towards me don't transfer that to the rest of the people of the united states. we love the people of the united states. they also wish in return peace and stability for all of the world. >> the big catalyst for protest at the moment in the middle east
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was the video that was released whichocked the prophet. as a result there was an take on the american embassy. do you condemn his attack that caused his murder? >> translator: any action that is provocative offends the religious thoughts of any people we condemn. like wise we condemn any extremism. what took place was ugly. this has very little or nothing to do with freedom or freedom of speech. this is the weakness of and the abuse of freedom and in many places it is a crime.
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it shouldn't take place. i do hope they will come and politicians will not offend those who they hold holy, but we also believe that this must also be resolved in a humane atmosphere. >> there are protesters all over the middle east now threatening the staff of american embassy threatening the kill them and pe head them. do you think they should stop? >> you see, i cannot determine what people or nations should do. but i do think that extremism gives birth to following in subsequent extremism.
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perhaps if the politicians take a better position in the west, vis-a-vis offensive words or pictures toward what is we hold -- what we hold holy, i think conditions will improve. but most nations do not pursue tensions and conflict. >> what happens your view, your opinion of the arab spring last year and what is your opinion of what is happening now in the countries where there were uprisings and we saw the end of gadhafi and mubarak and so on? >> i do believe that all of the world needs reform. the reform must take place everywhere. every where. even in the very same place that you and i are sitting because still, humans have not -- have not reached a degree of
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completeness there have been a lot of strides made but hopes and aspirations have not been realized. in some places, reforms have taken place and some sparks, as you said, we have witnessed but the desired point is still far away. >> you have often said that democracy, freedom, whatever you want to call it, is best borne out of the people of the country, not from other countries interfering. we saw that happening in tunisia in egypt in libya. have you encouraged that? do you encourage the people of those countries to rise up and to protest? >> you see for the people to rise up or to start a movement
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it is their own perogative, we do not meddle or interfere in that we believe everywhere justice respect freedom and friendship must prevail. >> do you believe fundamental any a man or a woman's right to protest? >> yes. it depends on the laws of any nation. all nation's laws are not equal. they differ. in most countries, one way or another, this is allowed under the laws but fundamentally, i do agree, certainly people must be allowed to express their own opinions freely, freedom is part of the essential rights of all nations. >> if that is -- >> no one has the right to take that away. >> if that is the case, why has the daughter of the former president of iran, why has she been imprisoned for protesting against your regime? >> in iran, there is only one regime, so perhaps they are
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protesting against that and in iran, the judicial branch is not under the power of the government, they have their own laws and's what they follow. and we have no interference in that. the government has paved the way for the highest form of freedom of most people. you see people criticize, people sometimes trespass the border lines of proper as a president, i'm not middle of the people of iran, without drawing any borders, without drawing any borders, without drawing any red lines, we converse. >> right, but this isn't just any protester, this could be your daughter in the future. she is daughter of your predecessors, the president. it's a fairly significant moment that she has been imprisoned.
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do you feel uncomfortable that this lady is in jail? >> let's separate the two argument, the two topics. happy this anyone is going to prison? no. never. no one should go to prison, but also keep in mind that in any country, every one must be treated equally under the laws. no one must have -- or must receive special treatment because of having been a part of the power structure, regardless of whether the action taken resulted in imprisonment is right or wrong. i'm not a judge of that. >> when we come back, i asked president ahmadinejad what it will take to stop the bloodshed in syria and you will hear his controversial views on 9/11. and two pills. afternoon's overhaul starts with more pain. more pills. triple checking hydraulics. the evening brings more pain. so, back to more pills. almost done, when... hang on.
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let's turn to syria. syria is a huge flashpoint at the moment in the middle east. there is a belief that a lot of the assad military are using weapons they've got from iran. is that true? and how long will you continue to support assad given the appalling conditions, the humanitarian catastrophe that we are all watching? at what point do you, the president of iran, say enough of this violence? >> translator: i do believe that we must all say enough of this violence right now. six months ago, i said enough of this violence. our opinion, vis-a-vis the issue of syria and other nations, is completely clear. we do believe that freedom, the right to choose, the right to vote, respect and justice is the fundamental right of all people. all people must obtain these rights. no one has the right to restrict a people and nation, but we believe as a friend of nations, we must help the nations around the world to obtain these rights through peaceful paths, through peaceful actions, and we have
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worked hard. i am now hard at work to organize a contact group in order to bring the two sides into a point of national agreement. >> mr. president, do you condemn the level of violence that president assad has brought against his people? because he has been slaughtering tens of thousands of syrians. if, as you say, you are a man of peace and you believe in fundamentally someone's right to protest, this violence has to stop. have you told president assad it has to stop? >> translator: i am stating my opinion quite clearly. i cannot interfere in the internal matters of syria, but i
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can announce my opinions. and we are seeking an understanding. some have been working hard to supply weapons to the opposition. the government is also equipped to enter this conflict and based on the foundation that some pursue to resolve issues through military intervention, we completely oppose that doctrine and thought and way of doing things. we do believe that things must be resolved through dialogue without any outsiders' interference. many encourage these clashes. many, and even i as a nation or myself as a president, i said to many countries directly that you are encouraging these clashes. that government is an independent government and it will defend itself. they did not accept this. some furnished weapons and when
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clashes start, no one displays any mercy. they kill, the other side kills in return and it never stops. >> is iran selling weapons to the syrian government and if it's not selling weapons, are you aware of iranian weapons being given to the syrian government? >> translator: i believe that there are many ahead of line in supplying weapons to sides and it would never reach our turn. it's quite clear who those individuals are, who those countries are. >> were you pleased that osama bin laden was killed by american navy s.e.a.l.s on the instructions of president obama? >> translator: i would have been happier to see a transparent
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trial, a formal trial, and find out the root causes of all of the events of the last few years. >> you have been reported as saying that you believe it is possible that the american government were partly responsible for the events of 9/11. that caused a huge outrage. do you stand by that position? >> translator: of course, the polls taken inside the united states show that over 75% of the united states population are still somewhat nebulous about the real reasons of that event, of those events. what i said were a number of questions. an event has occurred. due to that, two countries have been occupied and the conflict
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still continues. every day, hundreds of people in afghanistan, pakistan and iraq are killed. would it not have been better to have a more precise analysis and find out the true in-depth reason of the events of september 11th, make that -- make those findings transparent to the populations in the nations across the world, and then have a response in unison. of course, the expense would have been much less. do you know how much has been spent during the afghan and iraq war? >> a considerable amount of money but let me ask you this, mr. president. if nearly 3,000 iranians had been murdered in the way that americans were on 9/11, in tehran, how would you have reacted to the country that you believed had done that? >> translator: so you are saying that the country of afghanistan was at fault? was responsible? so you're seeing the responsible party as a whole nation? >> i think it is inarguable that
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al qaeda and osama bin laden's men who worked for him were training in afghanistan. so afghanistan was certainly knowingly harboring terrorists who were training to commit atrocities. >> translator: i believe that you can, under no circumstances, justify the condemnation and the attack upon a country in order to reach a single terrorist group, and i do believe that no matter how long you and i or other people speak, this is unexplainable. allow me to ask you. do you believe that the various administrations of the united states were successful in eradicating terrorism? they haven't been. has the problem been resolved or has it gotten worse? >> well, it's hard to say. >> translator: the approach was wrong. >> my answer would be, clearly,
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it was partially successful in the sense that al qaeda has been unable to commit another attack of that magnitude since. and again, i come back to if you were the president of iran and that attack happened in tehran, it wouldn't have been acceptable to your people for you to do nothing. >> translator: not at all. surely we would have pursued the perpetrators, not to seek an entire nation. but i ask you this. during the last ten years, during the last decade, how many american forces were lost and killed in afghanistan and iraq? even today, even right now, they're still losing their lives. has the situation improved? clearly not. how can you say that it has improved? now the activities of the terrorists have trespassed into the borders of pakistan.
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in iraq and afghanistan, over a million people have been killed or injured. we are incredibly saddened that over 3,000 people were killed in the united states. the iranian government immediately condemned those brutal attacks and i told you, we are against even the killing of one individual. why should human lives be taken, innocent humans, anywhere in the world. but in order to avenge the blood of 3,000 people, a million people shouldn't give their lives. some of the behaviors of the united states in our region encourages extremism. perhaps because they don't know the people. so they do need to reform their behavior. there was no need for 5,000 or 6,000 u.s. young men and women to lose their lives. >> coming , president ahmadinejad's provocative
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opinions on israel. he tells us what he really meant when he called for the country to be wiped off the map. two years ago, the people of bp made a commitment to the gulf. bp has paid over twenty-three billion dollars to help those affected and to cover cleanup costs. today, the beaches and gulf are open, and many areas are reporting their best tourism seasons in years. and bp's also committed to america. we support nearly 250,000 jobs and invest more here than anywhere else. we're working to fuel america for generations to come. our commitment has never been stronger. the wheels of progress haven't been very active lately. but because of business people like you, things are beginning to get rolling. and regions is here to help. making it easier with the expertise and service to keep those wheels turning. from business loans to cash management,
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in what may have been a preview of his speech to the general assembly on wednesday, president ahmadinejad criticized israel today. speaking to reporters, he said the nation has quote, no roots in the middle east. he was also contentious with me when we discussed israeli/palestinian relations. let me turn, mr. president, if i may, to israel. you have been condemned very vociferously in america for a comment you are said to have made that you wanted israel to be wiped off the map, wiped off the face of the earth. there have been many different interpretations of what you said. you have disputed the meaning that was then translated from the original farsi. let me give you this opportunity to say exactly what you did say, and to say exactly what you did mean. >> translator: we have been condemning the united states for many things, for having deposed
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a dictator with a revolution, for having sought freedom and free elections, for not allowing our oil and national treasure to leave our country freely, for having stood up to very dangerous terrorists in the region, for having stood up against saddam hussein, who enjoyed the backing of many. we stood up against him and did not allow the occupation of our territory. we have been condemned for a great many things. because we said justice for all. the rule of law for all. the right of peaceful nuclear energy for all. >> do you want, mr. president, do you want -- >> translator: allow me, sir. allow me, please. >> the question wasn't any of that. the question was do you believe that israel should --
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>> translator: but i will get to that answer. don't be in such a hurry. >> should israel be wiped off the face of the map? is that your desire? >> translator: if a group comes and occupies the united states of america, destroys homes while women and children are in those homes, incarcerate the youth of america, impose five different wars on many neighbors, and always threaten others, what would you do? what would you say? would you help it? would you help that entity? or would you help the people of the united states? so when we say, when we say to be wiped, we say for occupation to be wiped off from this world, for war seeking to be wiped off and eradicated.
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the killing of women and children to be eradicated. and we proposed a way, we proposed a path. the path is to recognize the right of the palestinians to self-governance. allow the people of palestine to make decisions regarding their own future. imagine one day in palestine, there is no longer occupation. occupation no longer exists in palestine. what else would remain? >> do you believe in a two-state solution? >> translator: about the decision of the people of palestine, i cannot express an opinion. that is their prerogative. but the people of palestine must be allowed by everyone and helped by everyone to allow them to give them the right to choose
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for themselves, to choose their own future. >> if they agreed, mr. president, if the palestinians agreed to a deal with the israelis which recognized a two-state solution, would you then recognize the state of israel? if the state of palestine was accepted by the international community, would you accept a two-state solution? >> translator: but before that, allow me -- allow me to say something. i believe what is our common responsibility, all of humanity, must help to end and eradicate occupation, bullying. eradicate bullying. no longer impose or meddle in the internal affairs of anyone. there are about ten million -- there is a ten million strong palestinian population. we cannot impose our will on them, allow them to choose for
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themselves. whatever their choice is, we cannot express or impose our opinion on them, but it's important for occupation to come to an end, for allowing occupation to come to an end -- >> i understand that. >> translator: people have the right to self-determination. >> i understand that, but if the palestinians were allowed to reach a deal, i'm assuming there is a deal, if they agree on a peace settlement, would you as president of iran recognize the state of israel, because that would be a very significant contribution to the peace settlement if you did? >> translator: i think there are many choices in question here. you seem to prefer only one choice, only one avenue, and want to ask me my opinion on that. i do believe that as a human being and as a political figure, prior to speaking about the
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construct of government, i must speak of the fundamental rights of the people. i say we must give the free right of choice and self-determination to the people of palestine. this is a much higher value, of much higher value than what you are intent in hearing. we recognize that -- allow occupation to come to an end, allow the palestinians to be released from incarceration, allow the people of palestine to sit down at the table of collaboration and make their own decision, and you should respect that decision and we should do that as well. any decision they make for their own land, for their own country, not for others'. >> would you prefer -- >> translator: i don't want to sit here and make a decision for them. whatever decision they make, we respect. >> coming up, things get pretty heated when i push president ahmadinejad to explain his views on the holocaust.
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when it comes to the holocaust. do you believe that the holocaust happened? because many jews believe that you do not think it happened, and they have a view of you because of that. >> translator: the historic event that you spoke of, i have two questions. i had two questions for quite some time, never received an answer to either one. everywhere, they allow a certain amount of research, of looking into historical events. whenever there are obstacles placed on this path, then a question mark or two will arise. why such obstacles? >> what are the questions that you have about the holocaust? >> translator: why in europe has it been forbidden for anyone to conduct any research about this event? why are researchers imprisoned? >> there has been extensive
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research into the holocaust. it is indisputable that over six million jews were annihilated by hitler and the nazis. the question is do you dispute that 6 million jews were killed? >> translator: do you believe in the freedom of thought and ideas or not? >> i believe in facts. >> translator: and the freedom of research, do you believe in that and allow that or no? >> i believe in -- mr. president -- >> translator: two times two equals what? >> that's not the question i'm asking you. you're a scholar. you're a very intelligent man. do you believe that 6 million jews were annihilated by hitler and the nazis? do you believe that as a fact? >> translator: you pose a question and are willing to only hear what you want me to say. >> it's a simple answer. >> translator: do you want my answer or the answer that you want me to give? your opinion is quite clear. >> you either believe it or you don't. >> translator: your answer and your thoughts seem to be quite
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clear on the topic. why do you wish to impose your opinion on me? >> i believe it is an inarguable fact that 6 million jews were killed in the war by hitler and the nazis. i'm merely asking you, as the president of iran and as a scholar, do you believe that 6 million jews were killed by the nazis, or do you think that is not true? >> translator: so in other words, i must accept the premise of your question in order to give you the answer? >> no. you either believe 6 million jews were killed or you don't. >> translator: you asked me a question. >> the answer to the question, mr. president, is yes or no. i'm not imposing any ideas. >> translator: allow me, sir. >> i'm not imposing any ideas. >> translator: so you see, what you're doing is you're -- is you're seeking a response based on my thoughts. why do you even care what the origin of my thoughts are? the result of the events of the second world war led to the
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occupation of the territory. >> the reason i care is because part of your reputation in america, the damage to your reputation amongst americans, is because they believe that you questioned the validity of the holocaust. so i'm simply asking you to state very clearly and simply whether you believed over 6 million jews were killed by the nazis in the war or not. and the answer's either yes or no. it's not a difficult question. >> translator: i thank you for caring so much about me. and i do believe that it is commonplace for someone, for an interviewer, to pose a question and wait for the proper response to be completed. if you keep wanting to interrupt me, it's not an issue. it's your show, here you are and there's the camera. speak to your heart's content, sir. >> i will allow you to answer in any way you see fit. >> translator: you must not insist on receiving the proper
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-- what you see as the proper answer or behavior from me. i pass no judgment about historic events. i say researchers and scholars must be free to conduct research and analysis about any historical event. and have contrary opinions, pro and con. this should not have led to setting up of new confines and border lines throughout the world and classify some as good, some as bad. why should a researcher be put in jail? one question. question number two, let's assume your parameter is right, your question is right. your assumption is that this
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>> translator: i do respect the right to free elections for the people of the united states. this is the right of the people of the united states. >> were you happy with what mitt romney said about iran? >> translator: i said that i really don't want to express an opinion but i do believe that unilateral behaviors and unilateral ways and bullying ways throughout the world are coming to an end. everyone in the world must embark upon a path of friendship, must seek humanity, human values and logic. and this is something that will govern the world. >> president ahmadinejad has famously claimed there are no homosexuals in iran. you will hear what he told me when i asked if he believes people are born gay. [ male announcer ] febreze. eliminates odors and leaves carpets fresh.
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in fact, over the last five years, no other energy company has invested more in the us than bp. we're working to fuel america for generations to come. today, our commitment to the gulf, and to america, has never been stronger. when people talk of free done and i have heard you talk of freedom they look at iran and they say that there are still laws banning homosexuality. you have a law that bans single women from going skiing on their own. and they say what kind of freedom is that, if people can't be gay because they were born that way or they can't go skiing as a single woman?
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what do you say to the critics? >> translator: now i have a managed to mix a number of things here. for a single lady to go on a trip to go skiing, is that -- is that forbidden in iran? who has told you that? >> it's not forbidden? >> translator: i'm hearing it from you. >> it has been widely reported that you brought in a rule that said single women couldn't go skiing. are you now telling me they can? >> translator: i'm hearing it from you, sir, for the very first time. >> if a single woman from iran is watching this interview, she can go skiing on her own? >> translator: of course they see this program because it's broadcast in iran.
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homosexuality is a completely different topic. this kind of support of homosexuality is only engraved in the thoughts of hard core capitalist and those who support capital holding rather than human values. according to all prophets and all religions and faith homosexuality is strictly forbidden. it's a very ugly behavior. how can you in order to obtain four or five additional votes or make a party more popular than the other how can you. allow me. >> do you believe that homosexual people, are they born homosexual or do they become homosexual? what do you believe? >> translator: they become.
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at the end of the day they do become that way. i'm not seeing any root causes of it. the problems that are facing humanity today are much deeper than whether a single lady goes skiing or not. there are many reforms to take place, many reforms. in the united states 50 million people live in poverty. the ameriis america a poor coun? they are human beings to do. they have many hopes and aspirations. 1.2 billion people live in utter poverty. dictatorships do exist. denying human dignity exists. all of this must be reformed. >> when i hear you -- >> translator: allow you. >> i like you speaking like
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this. this is great. shouldn't freedom and individuality and all those things extend to people who just happen to be gay. wouldn't it be great pr the president of iran to say everyone is entitled to be whatever sexuality they are born to be. that would be a great symbol of freedom. >> translator: do you really that someone is believe homosexual? >> yes, i absolutely believe that. >> translator: let me ask you this. do you believe that anyone is given birth through homosexuality? homosexuality ceases procreation. who has said that if you like or believe in doing something ugly and others do not accept the behavior then they are denying your freedom? who says that? perhaps in a country they wish
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to legitimatize killing. >> you are father of three children. you have two sons and daughter. what would you do if one of them were gay? >> translator: these things have different ways. the proper education must be given. the education system must be revamped. the political system must be revamped. these must be reforms revamped along the way. if a group recognizes an ugly behavior or ugly deed as legitimate, you must not expect other countries or other groups to give it the same. this is an imposition of your will, sir. >> how would you feel if one of your children dated a jew? >> translator: i would have to see who that jewish man or woman
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would be. i see love among people acceptable. there are many jews living in iran with whom they are very close. there are some muslims that marry into jewish problems or marry christians. we have no such problems. >> people will be surprised in hearing you saying that. they will like you saying that. >> translator: of course. i think none of us should represent the whole population of the united states. we believe that color, religion, native tongue, ethnic background should create differences or distances between people nor should it be this whole reason to bring people closer together. it's always been like this. >> when we come back a question i can promise you he's never been asked before. wait till you hear how he answers it.
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