Era of Dictators Over, Palestinian Refugees will Return Home

“They are the self-proclaimed leaders and everybody should know that self-proclaimed leadership is dictatorship,” Ahmadinejad,  referring to the United States, told an audience of hundreds at the Iranian embassy in Abuja. “The era of dictatorship is over,” he added through an official translator.

The Iranian leader said “the occupiers … should dismantle their evil forces from the face of earth.” Ahmadinejad’s appearance in the West African country, where Muslims make up an estimated half of the 150 million population, drew a rapturous welcome from the crowd, which chanted “Nigerians support Iran.”

“We are going to put an end to the suffering of the people of Palestine,” he said. “The Palestinian refugees will return to their homeland … soon we are going to celebrate our victory.”

Ahmadinejad was in Nigeria to attend a one-day summit of the Developing Eight (D-8) group on Thursday in Abuja. The Istanbul-based D-8 groups Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Turkey, with a total population of 930 million people.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul also arrived in Abuja Wednesday for the summit.