NYC Paper Mocks Ahmadinejad by Sending Him Jewish-Themed Welcome Basket -- See What Was In It

If you appreciate gag gifts, you'll really love this story.

The New York Post, which isn't afraid to be irreverent or antagonistic and is known for its provocative headlines, pulled off one of the most memorable stunts of the year when it recently sent a Jewish-themed welcome basket to Iranian President Ahmadinejad upon his arrival into New York for the U.N. General Assembly meeting.

The paper didn't hold back, filling the basket with tickets to a theater show about Jews, bagels forma popular Jewish deli, and a brochure for a Holocaust museum. Here's a taste:

The anti-Semite’s special welcome basket — from New Yorkers with love — included such locally procured goodies as Gold’s Borscht, Manischewitz Gefilte Fish and smoked whitefish from the world-famous Murray’s Sturgeon House on the Upper West Side.

If Ahmadinejad (pronounced: I’m a dinner jacket) needed midnight munchies during his visit to this infidel city, there were also plenty of H&H bagels, onion bialys and Zabar’s cream cheese.

To cheer up the sourpuss hatemonger, there’s a $125 comped ticket to the off-Broadway play “Old Jews Telling Jokes” — booked in his name. It just might take the edge off his bloodthirsty desire to develop nuclear weapons and wipe Israel off the map.

Anticipating the schlumpy, unshaven dictator’s penchant for wearing the same suit all week long, we thoughtfully included “I ♥ NY” undies and a stick of Irish Spring deodorant, to keep the flies away.

For those quiet moments away from spinning centrifuges, he can relax with a good book. But since it’s likely he can’t read the truth about 9/11, which he condemns as “a big lie,” there’s a picture book, “The 9/11 Report,” a graphic adaptation by Sid Jacobson and Ernie Colon.

The gesture, however, wasn't well-received. Not only did a member of Ahmadinejad's entourage say the Post was endangering that person's life, but the Secret Service nixed the idea: “This isn’t gonna happen. You have to go.”

You can see the basket here.