DHAKA: Iran’s foreign minister has confirmed he sent a message on Twitter wishing Jews a happy new year.

Mohammad Javad Zarif told Tasnim news agency that he sent a tweet saying: “Happy Rosh Hashana”.

In a Twitter exchange that followed, he also distanced himself from the Holocaust denials of former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

It comes amid confusion over whether new President Hassan Rouhani also tweeted “Happy Rosh Hashana”.

A message came from a Twitter account thought to belong to Mr Rouhani earlier this week, but officials later said he did not have any such account.

Iran has a Jewish community of between 25,000 and 80,000 so the fact that Iranian leaders are congratulating Jews on the occasion of Rosh Hashana would not necessarily be controversial, say correspondents.

Source: bbc
BDST: 2037 HRS, SEP 06, 2013
SR/AKA/RIS