Rep. Israel wants Ahmadinejad arrested

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad should be arrested and tried with war crimes while he's in the United States, Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) said Monday.

Ahmadinejad is in New York for the United Nations nuclear summit, and Israel wants to use the opportunity to have the Iranian president taken into custody.

"Ahmadinejad shouldn't just be protested in NYC, he should be arrested and tried for incitement to commit genocide," Israel said on his Twitter feed.

In a statement following his tweet, Israel suggested Ahmadinejad be prosecuted under Article 3 of the UN's Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which outlaws "incitement to commit genocide."

"President Ahmadinejad isn’t merely a pundit whose words can be dismissed: he is the leader of a country developing nuclear arms," Israel said. " He has called for the destruction of Israel and its people.  Incitement to Genocide is a punishable act and instead of giving him another platform at the UN, he should be tried."

The U.N. last used the charge against against Rwanadan politician Jean Paul Akayesu for his role in the genocide against the Tutsis.

This post was updated at 1:17pm.