Several clerics and lawmakers said that the terms Ahmadinejad used were "not appropriate." Hard-line cleric Ahmad Khatami said in his sermons during Friday Prayers in Tehran that the president could have sent a diplomatic message without "getting into religious issues." On March 9, Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi, a member of the Assembly of Experts, advised Ahmadinejad to refrain from commenting on religious issues. The latest round of criticism against Ahmadinejad comes amid a power struggle between the president and his powerful conservative opponents, who are aligned with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Ahmadinejad's final term in office ends in August.
