Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad might encounter some difficulty staying in the hotel rooms he booked for his upcoming United Nations visit. A man who was severely injured in a 1997 suicide bombing in Israel Filed Court papers yesterday, placing a claim on the rooms Ahmadinejad booked in the Warwick hotel, at 65 West 54th Street.
“Ahmadinejad is going to be staying at the Warwick hotel, paying a fortune, and he owes me $12 million and he just won’t pay it,” Stuart Hersh told the Post. Hersh has a $12 million judgment against Iran for his wounds, which include a 60 percent hearing loss, a speech impediment, back pain and difficulty walking. A former journalist, Hesh was one of 200 people wounded in the attack — in addition to five people who died — and has not been able to work since. “[Ahmadinejad] throws that in my face and in the face of America, saying: ‘Hey, I still got money — despite your sanctions.’”
Hersh’s lawyers estimated that Iran would spend at least $20,000 per night to put its delegation up at the hotel for a week. Ahmadinejad stay at the Warwick last year incited protests. This year, groups have threatened boycotts against the hotel. [Post] — Adam Fusfeld