Ahmadinejad: The Zionist occupiers are destructive microbes

Speaking in Damascus at a joint conference with Syrian President Bashar Assad, the Iranian president called foreign troops "uninvited guests" who have "caused so many problems for the people" of the region.

"They are uninvited guests, it is time to evict the foreign presence from the region," Ahmadinejad told reporters on Tuesday.

Without specifically naming the United Nations, Ahmadinejad went on to slam "international organizations founded after World War II", saying they have failed to resolve the major world crises.

From previous bitter experiences, he said, the world has learned that such organizations cannot "secure the world" as "they have established their positions on the basis of discrimination".

President Ahmadinejad is an outspoken critic of the structure of the United Nations. He says world powers abuse the veto rights they have granted themselves and have turned a deaf ear to the voices of the oppressed.

In support of "Israel", the United States has so far vetoed more than 45 UN Security Council resolutions. According to Ahmadinejad, the unswerving US support for the principles of Zionism has only increased the suffering of the Palestinians.

"Israel" in December launched a three week war on the 1.5 million residents of Gaza and killed around 1,350 Palestinians and injured some 5,450 people.

"The Zionist occupiers are destructive microbes. Zionism itself amounts to occupation, aggression, the use of assassination and annihilation," Ahmadinejad said "Supporting the Palestinian resistance is a humanitarian and public obligation."