Hundreds Protest a Dinner with Ahmadinejad

Hundreds of protesters rallied on 42nd Street last night as the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, dined with a group of religious leaders at the Hyatt Hotel.

The dinner, billed as an international dialogue, was sponsored by a collection of pacifist religious organizations including Quaker and Mennonite groups. The broad coalition of protesters outside said the event lended legitimacy to a dictator who supports terrorism and denies the Holocaust.

"How can you dine with a tyrant?" one of the protesters asked over a microphone. "This man has made a career out of terror and murder."

According to the rally's organizers, representatives from more than 50 Jewish, Christian, and human rights groups had pledged to attend the demonstration. Mr. Ahmadinejad was in town this week to address the United Nations General Assembly, where he argued that the "American empire" is nearing collapse.

A Zoroastrian priest who attended the dinner, Rohinton Dadima, said beforehand that he planned to reach out to Mr. Ahmadinejad by reading from a religious text.

"If he can be invited to events like this and see that all religions live in harmony in the U.S., and if he can learn something from it, that's why I'm here," Mr. Dadima said.

That harmony was not apparent outside the doors of the Hyatt, where protesters vehemently criticized the groups sponsoring the dinner. They cited Iran's nuclear weapons program and human rights abuses, particularly against women.

A Yeshiva University student at the demonstration, Abby Vishniavsky, said there was something "not quite right" about religious peace advocates engaging with Mr. Ahmadinejad.

"He's not an Imam, he's not a religious leader," she said. "He's made such horrible statements about wanting to destroy Israel."

The protest appeared heavily attended by supporters of the Republican presidential candidate, Senator McCain. They expressed their support for his running mate, Governor Palin, who was slated to speak at a similar rally several days ago but who was disinvited after the organizers chose to keep the event nonpartisan.