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Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has found himself in another controversy at home after a photo surfaced of the Iranian president closely consoling the mother of late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez at last week's funeral.

In the photo, Ahmadinejad is seen consoling Elena Frias, their hands clasped together and faces touching, next to the flag-draped coffin of her son.

Islamic tradition forbids men from touching women who are not members of their direct family.

According to The Telegraph, Mohammad Taghi Rahbar, the Friday prayer leader of Iran's second city, Isfahan, told Mehr news agency that Ahmadinejad had "lost control".

"Shaking hands with a non-mahram [unrelated by family] woman, under any circumstances, whether young or old, is not allowed. Hugging or expressing emotions is improper for the dignity of the president of a country like the Islamic Republic of Iran."

A doctored photo has also surfaced showing Ahmadinejad locked in the same embrace with a man who has been identified as Egyptian opposition leader and former director general of the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency, Mohamed ElBaradei.

Several reports suggest the second photo was released by Iranian government officials in an attempt to curb criticism of the president by claiming it was the original.

Ahmadinejad has been caught up in a behind-the-scenes struggle for some time with his superior, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

A presidential election is set for June in Iran, but the country's constitution forbids Ahmadinejad from seeking a third term in office.

fanatics. Thats why i hate these fuckken beardos , "shaking hands with a woman" i suppose thats a fist-zina according to the beardos.

Image of Ahmadinejad consoling Chavez

Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is under fire from the country's clerics over a photo of him consoling the mother of Hugo Chavez at the late Venezuelan leader's funeral—physical contact that's considered a sin under Iran's strict Islamic codes.

The photo, released by Venezuela's Miraflores Press Office, shows Elena Frías' right hand clutching Ahmadinejad's left, her head against his, as they stand near the flag-draped coffin of her son at a military academy in Caracas, Venezuela, on Friday.

The image drew the immediate fury of Tehran's religious conservatives. “No unrelated women can be touched unless she is drowning at sea or needs medical treatment," Hojat al-Islam Hossein Ibrahimi, a cleric at the Society of Militant Clergy, said, according to Iran's Al-Monitor.

Some of Ahmadinejad's supporters insisted the image was fake, digitally altered from a different photo showing the Iranian leader embracing an older man. But as The New York Times noted, the man-hug image was quickly debunked as a Photoshop job:

A side-by-side comparison produced by Entekhab showed that this image had been created by lifting the head of Mohamed ElBaradei, the former chief of the United Nations nuclear agency, from a previously published photograph of him greeting another Iranian official with a kiss in 2007.

Video of Ahmadinejad's embrace of Frías also surfaced, seeming to prove the original image's authenticity.

Oh snap did y'all read the comments Man you gotta love white folks

Hey, that's not fair, It doesn't count when you're the Prez.

NO, the issue here should not be ---Ahmadinejad salaat Weeso is broken or the etiquette of touching a maritable female----the question here should be---HOW THE FK did Hugo's mother feel so comfortable with Iranian dictator??? This photo shows they were close friends before this meeting. I can understand the Iranian prez being friends with fellow dead dictator--but his mother?? That irks me.



PS Knowing arabs typical behavior--he probably went immediately to have a cleansing bath while shouting sharmuuta!



http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/ahm ... 36230.html

Basra- wrote:
PS Knowing arabs typical behavior--he probably went immediately to have a cleansing bath while shouting sharmuuta!

Lol, he is Persian not Arab.