Mahmoud Ahmadinejad gave a controversial speech at Columbia University by Corina Ciubotaru

Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was invited to hold a speech at Columbia University on Monday and as we would expect, he managed to create some controversy. Thousands protested against him in front of the university campus and the United Nations Headquarters, but the person who attacked him most violently was the head of Columbia, Mr. Lee Bollinger. His brutal introduction and aggressive questions were answered calmly but strongly by Ahmadinejad, who didn't hesitate to quote the Quran and answer questions regarding everything from the status of women and homosexuals in Iran to the country's nuclear program. In short, everything we all would like to know directly from him. As for his host's conduct, I think any head of state invited to speak to students should be treated with respect and not be attacked with suppositions, especially if he is a former professor; freedom of speech is believed to be for everyone, even Islamic leaders, so maybe it would have been a better idea not to invite him at all if he is seen as a murderer. The students made a peaceful statement, with banners bearing messages as different as ""Racist homophobic misogynist get off my campus" and "No war on Iran". Meanwhile, protesters outside the United Nations on 47th Street were more annoyed by his past denial of the Holocaust and of Israel's rights. Mr. Ahmadinejad is in America to attend the U.N. General Assembly and asked to be allowed to visit the 9/11 site, to express sympathy for the victims. His request was denied by the city of New York.

related story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070924/ap_on_re_us/iran_us;_ylt=AnuDp.JyS98mQP_4uxgGeyis0NUE

by Corina Ciubotaru for PocketNews (http://pocketnews.tv)

PocketNews is a new real-time news broadcaster delivering the latest and hottest news right to your pocket ! With global clients who want to be kept up to date, PocketNews is everyone's way of keeping in touch with the World.