As the sun is about to set here in #Tehran I wish all Jews, especially Iranian Jews, a blessed Rosh Hashanah. pic.twitter.com/tmaf84x7UR
— Hassan Rouhani (@HassanRouhani) September 4, 2013
Update: The account appears to be fake:
Not only were the blessings not a diplomatic signal, they weren’t even really blessings from Rouhani himself, according to Iran’s official Fars News Agency. Mohammad Reza Sadeq, an adviser to Rouhani, said the Iranian president doesn’t even have a Twitter account (although he kept referring to it as “tweeter”), let alone that he was behind the eyebrow-raising tweet purportedly from the leader of a country that wishes for Israel’s destruction. “President Hassan Rouhani has no tweeter account,” Sadeq said.
But a very well-sourced Iranian reader we reached out to is discrediting the Fars News Agency report and says the tweet is legit. We will get to the bottom of the story and update as necessary. The latest: Javad Zarif, the Iranian foreign minister, apparently just opened a Twitter account yesterday and sent this out:
Happy Rosh Hashanah
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) September 5, 2013
And he is already engaging in some fascinating exchanges, namely with Nancy Pelosi’s daughter:
@sfpelosi Iran never denied it. The man who was perceived to be denying it is now gone. Happy New Year.
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) September 5, 2013
Some credible confirmation of the foreign minister’s account:
Just spoke with Iranian FM @JZarif – who confirms he IS tweeting and wishes Jews in Iran & around the world a happy new year! — Ditto!
— Christiane Amanpour (@camanpour) September 5, 2013
Final update: Rouhani’s PR team has put out a press release confirming the original tweet. Translated money quote:
The Press Sec./Office of President Rouhani congratulates Jewish compatriots on the occasion of the new year
The Dish 