The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Tehran

Iranian media are quoting the country's vice president as saying Iranians are "friends of all people in the world - even Israelis."

It is a rare instance of official Iranian media carrying an expression of sympathy toward Israelis from such a high-level official.

Several newspapers and the official Web site of Iran's tourism agency on Monday attributed the comment to Vice President Esfandiar Rahim Mashai, who is in charge of Iranian tourism and historical sites.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad prompted international criticism when he said in 2005 that he believed Israel would one day be "wiped off the map. Another report adds: A top negotiator said on Sunday Palestinians may demand to become part of a binational state with Israel, if the Jewish state continued to reject the borders they propose for a separate country.

Ahmed Qurie, who heads Palestinian negotiators in U.S.-brokered talks with Israel, told Fatah party loyalists behind closed doors that a two-state solution could be achieved only if Israel met their demands to withdraw from all occupied land.