(Gulfnews) A request by Iran's president to lay a wreath at the World Trade Center site in New York City next week has been turned down by police and blasted by US diplomats as an attempt to turn ground zero into a "photo op".
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who is to arrive on Sunday to address the UN's General Assembly, asked the city and the US Secret Service earlier this month for permission to visit the site of the September 11, 2001, attacks.
The request to enter the fenced-in site was rejected because of ongoing construction there and due to security concerns, police spokesman Paul Browne said on Wednesday.
White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said a visit to Ground Zero "is a matter for the city of New York, but it seems more than odd that the president of a country that is a state sponsor of terror would visit Ground Zero".
Mohammad Mir Ali Mohammadi, spokesman for the Iranian mission to the UN, said he was not notified officially that Ahmadinejad would not be allowed at the site, but said it was unfortunate.
"President Ahmadinejad intended to lay a wreath at the site of Ground Zero in order to pay tribute to the victims of the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001. We are hopeful that we can still work something out with the police department," he said.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said on Wednesday the city was considering Ahmadinejad's application, prompting an outcry from politicians and families of September 11 victims. Browne said about two hours later that Kelly had misspoken.
Port Authority and police representatives decided at a meeting that no dignitaries would be allowed inside the site, said Port Authority spokesman Steve Coleman. The United States, its European allies and other world powers suspect Iranian authorities of seeking nuclear weapons, although Iran insists its uranium enrichment programme and other atomic activities are aimed only at producing energy.