TEHRAN—Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told reporters Thursday he was kind of getting back into old R.E.M. again, rediscovering his once-great passion for the alternative rock group's first six albums.

People don't give Lifes Rich Pageant enough credit, but it's really good—really good," said the Iranian ruler who has been widely condemned for his human rights record. "It's a great album to put on when you're traveling. When I went to the U.N. in 2005 to speak about Iran's right to develop nuclear power, I was listening to it all the time."

Recently, aides confirmed Ahmadinejad's relationship with Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who agreed with the president's remarks that Israel should be wiped off the map, had been strained after the ayatollah issued a fatwa declaring R.E.M. had "totally sold out" with the release of Green.

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A funny one by The Onion.