Congressman calls for Ahmadinejad arrest

• Tweet

NEW YORK, May 3 (UPI) -- A New York congressman Monday called for the arrest of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad while he's in the city for the U.N. nuclear summit.

U.S. Rep. Steve Israel, a Democrat, sent a message on Twitter saying Ahmadinejad should be "arrested and tried for incitement to commit genocide," The Hill reported.

Israel later issued a statement citing Ahmadinejad's past calls for the destruction of Israel, noting, " Incitement to genocide is a punishable act and instead of giving him another platform at the U.N., he should be tried."

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., dismissed Ahmadinejad's appearance and called for hearings into corporations that do business with Iran, Politico reported.

"There are no other words to say it: Iran's presence at this conference is a sham," Gillibrand said in her own release. "It's time for Iran to make a real choice about its future, and it's time for these companies to make a choice about theirs: Keep investing in Iran and threatening our security, or get real access to the global economy. They cannot and will not have it both ways."