RUTHFULLY YOURS

Why not cover them with burkas? rsk

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani paid a visit to Rome’s famous Capitoline Museums, which features some of the most beautiful works of art in the western world.

There was only one problem, however. Mr. Rouhani is a Muslim. And given the Islamic strictures against displaying the human form in all its glorious nakedness, Italian authorities were presented with something of a dilemma.

They solved the problem by placing white panels around the statues that displayed boy and girl bits, thus sparing Rouhani his offended cultural sensitivities.

IBT:

Rouhani toured the Musei Capitolini (Capitoline Museums) – which hosts a huge collection of artefacts from the ancient, medieval and renaissance periods – accompanied by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi on 25 January.

However, the Iranian leader could not admire some of the museum’s masterpieces, as all marbles depicting naked scenes had been carefully hid behind large white panels.

The vast censorship effort was reportedly implemented as a show of respect to the reformist president, out of fears that the exposed private parts of ancient Roman gods could offend Iranian sensitivity. Wine was also banned from official receptions.

Last Thursday, at the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Secretary of State John Kerry said, “I think that some of it (the money from the Iranian nuclear deal), will end up in the hands of the IRGC or other entities, some of which are labeled terrorists”, adding, “You know, to some degree, I’m not going to sit here and tell you that every component of that can be prevented. But I can tell you this, right now, we are not seeing the early delivery of funds going to that kind of endeavor at this point in time.”

Now that the money has already been released, Kerry casually acknowledges an inevitability that we, who have been in opposition of the Iranian nuclear deal, have been arguing all along.

Last May, White House spokesman Josh Earnest was asked by a reporter whether or not when the sanctions are dismissed, there will be an increase in Iran’s destabilizing operations in the region and funding of Hezb’allah and other groups, he responded, “I think, most importantly it’s the hope of the Iranian people that the influx of resources will be devoted to meeting the needs of the population there.”

This is yet another example of the triumph of “hope” in Obama’s foreign policy over “realism”. We have all known that since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, Iran has chosen to use most of its GNP for guns and not butter.

Those of us who were against the deal, were not simply opposed to it because Iran will legally be allowed to have access to nuclear weapons in a mere 10 years — and that is assuming that they will not cheat. (One might do well to ask: What is ten years in the life of a nation?) It was because we knew that an enormous cash influx will go to the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism, which will be used to further carry out more dastardly acts against civilians. We knew it would go to further destabilize the region with its proxy wars, and would only contribute to a feeling of growing triumphalism and empowerment against its Sunni Arab rivals, what it regards as “the minor Satan”, Israel, and “the great Satan”, the United States.

ROME—Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s campaign to reintroduce Tehran to the West took a step forward with a high-profile audience with Pope Francis that focused on human rights and Iran’s role in Middle East conflicts.

The meeting—the first between a pontiff and an Iranian leader since 1999—came Tuesday on the second day of a four-day visit by Mr. Rouhani to Italy and France that is meant to cement the country’s ties with the West. The trip is the first by the Iranian president since sanctions on Iran were loosened this month in the wake of an agreement to implement key restrictions on its nuclear program.

Most of Mr. Rouhani’s visit, including meetings with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and French President François Hollande, is focused on jump-starting Iran’s economic relations with Europe.

But the meeting with Pope Francis is particularly significant because of the close ties the Vatican and Iran have enjoyed for decades and Iran’s desire to project an image of a tolerant country in a region beset by strife.

The pontiff and Mr. Rouhani met for 40 minutes—extraordinarily long compared with typical state meetings held by the pope. Mr. Rouhani was accompanied by a 12-person entourage, including Iran’s foreign minister