by Nayef Zidani
Google Earth satellite image shows Star of David on roof of national carrier building
A satellite image of Tehran airport taken by Google Earth service outraged Iranian government officials as the Star of David appeared on the roof of the headquarters of the national carrier Iran Air.
The Iranian became angry when local media reported Saturday the discovery of a Google Earth image that shows the Star of David on top of the main building of the Airline of the Islamic Republic of Iran, also known as Iran Air, and called for its instant removal, the Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot reported Sunday.
As speculations rose about the presence of the Zionist symbol in the Islamic republic that has severed all ties with Israel since the 1979 revolution, Iranian media explained that the Iran Air building was, in fact, constructed by Israeli engineers during the time of Shah Mohamed Reza Pahlavi.
Amid calls for removing the symbol, several local media reports focused on the close ties that existed between Israel and the pre-revolution government.
According to the reports, not only did the government of the Shah hire Israeli engineers to build the headquarters of the national airliner, but starting 1960 regular flights were scheduled between Tehran’s Mehrabad International Airport and Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport.
The reports added that Israel also sold weapons to the army of the Shah in return for oil and that there were training programs between both countries where Israeli experts trained Iranians in agriculture and trade.
This is not the first time that the Star of David stirs outrage in Iran, as it was spotted in August on top of one of the buildings in Tehran’s Revolution Square. The square itself had hundreds of Stars of David, in what local media viewed as a symbol of evil trying to destroy the heart of the Islamic republic.
The presence of such a large number of stars stirred confusion amongst Iranians as the media wondered what made the person who designed the square draw the symbol of the Hebrew state.
An article in a local news website raised the question of whether the designer was ignorant of the symbol altogether or was too indifferent to think of its political associations.
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