Iran clerics take Ahmadinejad to task for hugging Chavez’s mother at funeral

Senior Iranian clerics have scolded President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for consoling Hugo Chavez\'s mother with a hug – a physical contact considered a sin under Iran\'s strict Islamic codes.

[additional-authors]

Jewish Journal

March 12, 2013

Senior Iranian clerics have scolded President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for consoling Hugo Chavez's mother with a hug – a physical contact considered a sin under Iran's strict Islamic codes.

The rebuke follows a widely published photo showing Ahmadinejad embracing Chavez's mother at the funeral of the late Venezuelan president in what is seen as taboo-breaking behavior in Iran.

Iranian papers on Tuesday cited clerics from the religious center of Qom who described the hug as “forbidden,” inappropriate behavior and “clowning around.”