Holocaust

[Rasputin]

در رابطه با كنفرانس هولوكاست كه قرار است در روز دوشنبه آتى در تهران برگزار شود، وزرات خارجه آلمان، نماينده سفارتخانه جمهورى اسلامى ايران در برلين را فراخواند. سخنگوى وزارت خارجه آلمان اعلام داشت كه دولت اين كشور به نماينده دولت تهران واضح و روشن تفهيم كرده است كه هر گونه نسبيت بخشيدن به فاجعه هولوكاست و يا زير علامت سئوال بردن آن را محكوم مي*داند. براساس گفته منوچهر محمدى معاون وزير خارجه ايران، شصت و هفت ميهمان خارجى از سى كشور جهان در اين كنفرانس شركت خواهند كرد.

[Khorsheed]

Germany says Holocaust conference 'unacceptable'

The German Government has summoned the Iranian charge d'affairs in Berlin to express its opposition to a planned conference on the Holocaust in Tehran next week.

A foreign ministry spokesman, Jens Ploetner, told reporters that Germany had made clear that as the country responsible for the Nazis' crimes it found any statements questioning Israel's right to exist or the fact of the Holocaust to be "shocking" and "unacceptable".

"We condemn any attempt, in the past or in the future, to give a forum to those who relativise or question the Holocaust," he told a government news conference.

He said Germany "bears a unique responsibility toward the victims of the Nazis, in particular the victims of the Holocaust".

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister, Manouchehr Mohammadi, said this week the staging of the conference on December 11-12 was a response to the lack of answers to questions posed over the Holocaust by President Mahmood Ahmadinejad.

He declined to give the names of the 67 international "scholars" he said would be attending over fears their home countries would ban them from travelling to Tehran.

United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan said this week that he would deplore any conference that sought to cast doubt on the reality of the Holocaust.

[Rasputin]

Iran's president says Holocaust now up for debate

TEHRAN (Reuters) - The Holocaust is now a subject of serious debate, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Saturday.


Iran has invited scholars from 30 countries to attend a conference starting on Monday about the Holocaust, in which six million Jews were killed by the Nazis.

"For 60 years talking about the Holocaust was a crime in the West but now there is a serious debate about the Holocaust in the media and also in political and popular meetings," state television quoted Ahmadinejad as saying.

Ahmadinejad sparked an international outcry by referring to the Holocaust as a "myth" and saying Israel should be relocated to Europe or North America.

"Even some Western politicians have declared that the original foundation of the Zionist regime (Israel) was a mistake," he said on Saturday.

Ahmadinejad has said his questioning of the Holocaust is aimed at encouraging scholarly debate and an examination of the reasons behind the creation of the state of Israel.

Deputy Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mohammadi has said the Holocaust conference will look at issues such as "whether the gas chambers were actually used by the Nazis."

The conference has been condemned by various countries and organizations. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack described it as "disgraceful."

"It is just flabbergasting that ... the leadership of the regime continues to deny that 6 million plus people were killed in the Holocaust," he told reporters on Friday.

Karen Pollock, chief executive of the British Holocaust Educational Trust, called the Iranian conference "ridiculous."

"Denial of the Holocaust is a virulent form of anti-Semitism," she said in a statement. "It is not only deeply offensive to Holocaust survivors but to any right-minded human being."

Iran was also sharply criticised for hosting a cartoon competition on the Holocaust this year.

[mike435]

how can 6 of you guys vote that it never happend

[Rasputin]

مقام های ايرانی برگزار کننده کنفرانس هولوکاست می گويند قصدشان از برپايی اين کنفرانس 'نفی يا اثبات' واقعه کشتار يهوديان در جنگ جهانی دوم نيست، بلکه می خواهند ابعاد حقوقی، سياسی و بين*المللی هولوكاست را بررسی کنند.
کنفرانس دو روزه 'هولوکاست، چشم انداز جهانی' که از دوشنبه 11 دسامبر (بيستم آذرماه) در تهران آغاز به کار کرده، در چند ماه گذشته از زمان اعلام خبر برپايی آن مخالفت های زيادی را به ويژه در کشورهای آلمان و اسرائيل برانگيخته است.

معترضين به برپايی اين کنفرانس دولت ايران را به تلاش برای انکار هولوکاست متهم می کنند و اين همايش را همراستا با سخنان محمود احمدی نژاد، رئيس جمهور ايران، می دانند که پيشتر با ترديد در وقوع کشتار يهوديان در دوران آلمان نازی، اسرائيل و متحدانش را متهم کرده بود از 'هولوکاست' برای سرکوب فلسطينيان استفاده می کنند.

با اين حال منوچهر متکی، وزير امور خارجه ايران در مراسم گشايش اين کنفرانس به رد اتهام های وارده پرداخته و هدف از برپايی اين همايش 'ايجاد فضای علمی و طرح ديدگاه *های مختلف در خصوص يک موضوع تاريخی' عنوان کرده است.


چه دليلی دارد كه قبول، رد يا انتقاد از هولوكاست نه با معيارهای علمی بلكه با معيارهای اعتقادی و سياسی سنجيده شود؟


منوچهر متکی، وزير امور خارجه ايران

به گزارش خبرگزاری دانشجويان ايران، ايسنا، آقای متکی معترضان به کنفرانس را به تلاش برای 'سد کردن روند پژوهش' متهم کرده و گفته است: "چه دليلی دارد كه علاقمندی به دانش و پژوهش ... و پرسش درباره يک پديده تاريخی مثل هولوكاست رنگ و بوی سياسی و ايدئولويک پيدا كند؟ چه دليلی دارد كه قبول، رد يا انتقاد از هولوكاست نه با معيارهای علمی بلكه با معيارهای اعتقادی و سياسی سنجيده شود؟"

فرانسيس هريسون، خبرنگار بی بی سی در تهران، می گويد دولت ايران می داند که اين کنفرانس باعث خشم در خارج از کشور خواهد شد، اما می خواهد ميزان پايبندی غرب به آزادی بيان را محک بزند.

برپايی کنفرانس هولوکاست در داخل ايران نيز با انتقادهايی از جمله از سوی نماينده يهوديان در مجلس ايران روبرو شده که بنا به گزارش خبرگزاری رويترز يک روز پيش از گشايش اين همايش آن را 'توهين' به جامعه يهوديان ايران دانست.


اين کنفرانس [هولوکاست] اقدام شرم آور ديگری در مورد اين موضوع خاص از سوی رژيم تهران است


وزارت امور خارجه آمريکا

به گفته خبرنگار ما اين کنفرانس واکنش ايران به چاپ کاريکاتورهای پيامبر اسلام در يک روزنامه دانمارکی است که باعث خشم مردم در کشورهای اسلامی شد اما برخی ليبرال های غربی از آن دفاع کردند.

سازمان دهندگان کنفرانس 'هولوکاست، چشم انداز جهانی' تعداد مقالاتی را که قرار است در اين همايش ارايه شود 40 عنوان اعلام کرده و گفته اند سخنرانانی از سی کشور جهان برای شرکت در اين کنفرانس به ايران سفر خواهند کرد.

با اين حال برخی گزارش ها حاکی است که دولت ايران از بيم آنکه هيات های شرکت کننده از سفر به تهران منع شوند، نام آنها را فاش نکرده است.

انکار هولوکاست در برخی کشورهای اروپايی از جمله آلمان و اتريش جرم محسوب می شود.

حدود ده ماه پيش (21 فوريه) ديويد اروينگ، مورخ سرشناس بريتانيايی، به جرم انکار واقعه کشتار يهوديان در جنگ جهانی دوم در دادگاهی در وين، پايتخت اتريش، محکوم شناخته شد و به سه سال زندان محکوم شد.

[Rasputin]

Iran's foreign minister has rejected criticism of a two-day conference being held in Iran to examine whether the Holocaust actually happened.
Manouchehr Mottaki told participants the event did not seek to confirm or deny the Holocaust, but rather to allow people to "express their views freely".

Israel's prime minister has condemned the gathering as "a sick phenomenon".

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has questioned the scale of the Holocaust, in which six million Jews died.

According to the foreign ministry in Tehran, 67 researchers from 30 countries are attending the conference in Iran, which is home to 25,000 Jews.

Its main aim is to create an opportunity for thinkers who cannot express their views freely in Europe about the Holocaust

Manouchehr Mottaki
Iranian foreign minister


Holocaust evidence

Participants include a number of well-known "revisionist" Western academics. American David Duke, a former leader of the Ku Klux Klan, is to present a paper.

But a number of Jewish rabbis are also there. One, British Rabbi Ahron Cohen, said he had come to the conference to put the "Orthodox Jewish viewpoint" across.

"We certainly say there was a Holocaust, we lived through the Holocaust. But in no way can it be used as a justification for perpetrating unjust acts against the Palestinians," he said.

'Express views freely'

Opening the conference, Mr Mottaki said the aim of the conference was "not to deny or confirm the Holocaust".

"Its main aim is to create an opportunity for thinkers who cannot express their views freely in Europe about the Holocaust," he said.

CONFERENCE PARTICIPANTS
Australian Fredrick Toeben, jailed in Germany for incitement and insulting the memory of the dead
Frenchman Robert Faurisson, convicted in France under Holocaust denial laws
Frenchman Georges Thiel, convicted in France under Holocaust denial laws
American David Duke, a former KKK leader and white supremacist
Mr Mottaki dismissed foreign criticism as "predictable", telling delegates there was "no logical reason" to oppose the conference.

In a recorded address broadcast to the nation, President Ahmadinejad questioned why the West would not allow "any investigation" into the Holocaust.

Mr Ahmadinejad has repeatedly downplayed the extent of the Holocaust, describing it as a myth used to justify the existence of Israel and oppression of the Palestinians. He has called for Israel to be dismantled.

But in a number of European countries - including Germany, Austria and France - it is illegal to deny the Holocaust. An Austrian court jailed Briton David Irving for three years on charges of Holocaust denial.

'Negative impression'

Israel's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert condemned the conference as "a sick phenomenon that shows the depths of hatred of the fundamentalist Iranian regime".

Norbert Lammert, president of the German parliament, sent a letter to Mr Ahmadinejad criticising the event.


Some Jewish rabbis are at the conference to put their views across
"I condemn any attempt to offer anti-Semitic propaganda a public forum under the pretext of scientific freedom and objectivity," he wrote.

A number of prominent Holocaust historians are attending a rival gathering taking place in Berlin, backed by the German government, in protest at the Tehran conference.

The US state department last week described the Iranian event as "yet another disgraceful act on this particular subject by the regime in Tehran".

Iran knows this conference is going to cause outrage abroad but it says it wants to test the limits of the West's commitment to freedom of speech, says the BBC's correspondent in Tehran, Frances Harrison.

Iran is drawing a parallel with the Danish cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad, which provoked outrage in the Islamic world but were defended by Western liberals, she says.

Iran's one Jewish MP, Morris Motamed, told the BBC he opposed the conference.

"Holding this conference after having a competition of cartoons about the Holocaust has put a lot of pressure on Jews all over the world and it can give nations and governments a very negative impression of Iran," he said.

[Rasputin]

Why are Jews at the 'Holocaust denial' conference?

Why are Jews attending a conference on the Holocaust in Tehran at which star guests include deniers of the genocide? Clue: they also want an end to the Israeli state.
A handful of Orthodox Jews have attended Iran's controversial conference questioning the Nazi genocide of the Jews - not because they deny the Holocaust but because they object to using it as justification for the existence of Israel.

With their distinctive hats, beards and side locks, these men may, to the untrained eye, look like any other Orthodox believers in Jerusalem or New York. But the Jews who went to Tehran are different.

Some of them belong to Neturei Karta (Guardians of the City), a group of a few thousand people which views Zionism - the movement to establish a Jewish national home or state in what was Palestine - as a "poison" threatening "true Jews".

WHO, WHAT, WHY?

A feature to the BBC News Magazine - aiming to answer some of the questions behind the headlines

A representative, UK-based Rabbi Aharon Cohen, told the conference he prayed "that the underlying cause of strife and bloodshed in the Middle East, namely the state known as Israel, be totally and peacefully dissolved".

In its place, Rabbi Cohen said, should be "a regime fully in accordance with the aspirations of the Palestinians when Arab and Jew will be able to live peacefully together as they did for centuries".

Neturei Karta believes the very idea of an Israeli state goes against the Jewish religion.

The book of Jewish law or Talmud, they say, teaches that believers may not use human force to create a Jewish state before the coming of the Messiah.


Ultra-Orthodox Jews argue that the Holocaust was "divine will"
But how does Neturei Karta and other Orthodox Jews such as Austria-based Rabbi Moishe Ayre Friedman justify attending such a controversial conference?

Rabbi Friedman told BBC Radio Four's PM programme that he was not in Tehran to debate whether the Holocaust happened or not, but to look at its lessons.

He says the Holocaust was being used to legitimise the suffering of other peoples and he wanted to break what he called a taboo on discussing it.

The main thing, he argued, was not Jewish suffering in the past but the use of the Holocaust as a "tool of commercial, military and media power".

In what many other Jews would consider the height of naivety, he commended Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for wanting "a secured future for innocent Jewish people in Europe and elsewhere".


The conference was just the latest anti-Israeli event sponsored by Iran
In his speech to the conference, Neturei Karta's Rabbi Cohen said there was no doubt about the Holocaust and it would be "a terrible affront to the memory of those who perished to belittle the guilt of the crime in any way".

However, he also argued that the genocide had been divine will. "The Zionists, with their secular pompous approach behave in complete opposition to this philosophy and dare to say 'Never Again'.

"They have the audacity to think that they can prevent the Almighty from repeating a Holocaust. This is heresy."

Neturei Karta have been condemned by other Orthodox Jews as an extreme fringe movement while the Tehran conference has been denounced by the Israeli parliament.

[Rasputin]

Last night when I saw on the news that Iranian students had demonstrated against Ahmadinejad at Amir Kabir Universtiy I was filled with pride. These are the cream of the crop of university students in Iran having finished at the very top of the infamous and gruelingly difficult ‘concours’ examinations. Amir Kabir is Iran’s MIT. These students are the ones that do not have to worry about their own futures as much as the rest. But they worry about that of the country. They are courageous enough to stand there in front of Ahmadinejad and do what most of us are scared of doing: call him a dictator to his face.

They burned his picture and chanted, “Death to the dictator.” In our days it was “Death to the Shah” which made it a decidedly Iranian slogan, there being only one shah and him being Iranian. Last night I went to bed wondering how many would get arrested and tortured like they routinely do whenever they dare speak against the regime through out our miserable history.

Today there are several kinds of brain-drain taking place in Iran. There is one that comes from migration to freer shores by such bright young stars as the Amir Kabir students. There is another caused by the drug epidemic that no one really talks about. There is one that takes place through marriage and domestication of women which is too subtle even for the left to acknowledge. But there is also one caused by imprisonment and torture. The draining of brains can happen within the cozy confines of the motherland.

Ahmadinejad is a newer brand of dictator one who was elected with a majority of the votes. But in Iran the regime seems to think that a simple majority gives license to engage in any act it wishes to commit. They do not realize or want to realize that respect for minority opinion and individual liberties are what make a true democracy. Hitler won an election for god’s sake! Oh, I forgot their brand of revisionist historiography does not see a monster in Hitler.

In fact when I first heard about the student protests I thought they were protesting the Holocaust Denial Conference. But no Muslim or Zoroastrian will defend a Jew in Iran -- not at the cost of imprisonment or torture. I, myself, am using a pseudonym and am as timid as the next collaborating Iranian. At least, though, I spent a good few hours pondering my own cowardice and trying to build enough courage to put my real name to this. That is more that most people do.

You can hate Israel. You can hate the Zionists. You can resent the Jews being given Palestine instead of East Germany but to deny the Holocaust is idiotic. Not only is it historically inaccurate but it is tasteless and self-defeating as well. It would be easier to deny the martyrdom of Imam Reza, for example, whom even the more devout seem to think, died of over-eating rather than poisoned grapes.

Why would you want to reduce the biggest, most horrendous crime committed by a Western/Christian power in history if you are out to show the world that Islam and its anti-Westernism can lead the world to a better place? If you are trying to avenge the blasphemous act of the Danish cartoonists why not question the existence of the Vikings! I would have loved to see the students demonstrate against the conference. What happened to Iranian Jews both inside and outside Iran? Why have they not said a word? If they have then they should have said it louder so we could all hear--like the students at Amir Kabir who made it to prime-time news here in Europe. Right now there are Iranian Jews in Los Angeles who are still doing business with Iran and this regime.

The good news is that the students in Tehran are once again showing signs of youthful courage. The kind that brings governments down. But the opposition movement abroad, its total inability to unite factions, to lobby Washington, and to have a coherent ideological back bone, is impotent to do anything to help them. Back in ’70s the opposition movements abroad made a lot of noise and tilted international opinion against the Shah. Now those students in Iran have no one to help them. They also happen to be opposing the regime just as Washington not to mention Paris, London and Berlin want to negotiate and make the, so called, Islamic Republic ‘partners’ in establishing peace in Iraq.

Anyway you look at it the war in Iraq had one real victor: Iran. The utter failure of the Americans in Iraq not only made a huge mess of Iraq but strengthened the Iranian regime’s domestic and international stature. After 9/11 those who opposed the theocratic regime saw its fall as a real possibility but the failure of the United States in Iraq sealed that hope as unfounded and naïve.

In fact Iran is now the new face of anti-Americanism in world over -- just as America has reached the heights of unpopularity. They are the underdog heroes of the Muslim world. Even the French love Ahmadinejad. Because he has become the anti-Bush par excellence. The intellectuals in the West hate Bush so much that they embrace all his enemies without looking to see where those enemies might stand on Gay marriage! Anti-Americanism has become so widespread that anyone who champions it, like Ahmadinejad, becomes an instant hero. Ahmadinejad told those brave students heckling him that America was the worst dictatorship in the world. For how long are we going to use America as a scapegoat? For as long as her short-sighted policies make her unpopular.

The people of Iran are waiting for petrol money on their dinner tables that is why they voted for Ahmadinejad. Not because they wanted a Holocaust conference. Everyone resents the large sums that the government spends in Lebanon and Palestine. The people of Iran want what most people want: economic prosperity and the freedom to enjoy it. But without any real opposition movement backing those lone cries of the brave university students the world will forget about their plight and Ahmadinejad and the oppressive regime in Iran will bask in their newfound identity as the ones who can stand up to almighty America and yes, even help her in establishing democracy in Iraq!

[Rasputin]

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has met delegates at a conference in Iran questioning the Holocaust, drawing widespread international criticism.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel condemned it and British PM Tony Blair called it "shocking beyond belief".

Iran says it wants to debate what it calls taboos surrounding the Holocaust. Conference participants include white supremacists and Holocaust deniers.

Some six million Jews were murdered by the Nazi regime during World War II.

According to the foreign ministry in Tehran, 67 researchers from 30 countries are attending the conference in Iran, which is home to 25,000 Jews.

Participants include a number of well-known "revisionist" Western academics. American David Duke, a former leader of the Ku Klux Klan, is to present a paper.

The BBC's Frances Harrison in Tehran describes the conference as a roll call of the world's most infamous Holocaust deniers - all delighted that Iran has given them the oxygen of publicity.

'Unacceptable character'

In a number of European countries - including Germany, Austria and France - it is illegal to deny the Holocaust. An Austrian court jailed Briton David Irving for three years on charges of Holocaust denial.

CONFERENCE PARTICIPANTS
Australian Fredrick Toeben, jailed in Germany for incitement and insulting the memory of the dead
Frenchman Robert Faurisson, convicted in France under Holocaust denial laws
Frenchman Georges Thiel, convicted in France under Holocaust denial laws
American David Duke, a former KKK leader and white supremacist


Media spotlight on conference
In quotes: World reaction

At his monthly media briefing in London, UK Prime Minister Tony Blair called the Holocaust conference "shocking beyond belief".

He described Iran as a "major strategic threat" to the Middle East, saying: "Iran is deliberately causing maximum problems for moderate governments and for ourselves in the region - in Palestine, in Lebanon and in Iraq."

He added there was "little point" in including Iran and Syria in regional issues, such as Iraq, "unless they are prepared to be constructive" and that it would be a "major challenge" to deal with Iran.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, flanked by visiting Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, said: "We reject in the strongest terms conferences held in Iran on the supposed non-existence of the Holocaust.

"Germany will never accept this and will use all possibilities at its disposal to oppose it."

Mr Olmert said the conference showed the "unacceptable character" of the Iranian government and the "danger" it poses for the West.

'Freedom of expression'

Opening the conference on Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said the aim of the conference was "not to deny or confirm the Holocaust".


Mr Ahmadinejad accuses Israel of trading off a "Holocaust myth"

"Its main aim is to create an opportunity for thinkers who cannot express their views freely in Europe about the Holocaust," he said.

In a recorded address broadcast to the nation, President Ahmadinejad questioned why the West would not allow "any investigation" into the Holocaust.

Mr Ahmadinejad has repeatedly downplayed the extent of the Holocaust, describing it as a myth used to justify the existence of Israel and oppression of the Palestinians. He has called for an end to the Israeli state.

Many Iranians must be wondering why they have the right to deny the Holocaust with impunity, but not to question their own leaders without risking jail, our correspondent says.

In recent months, newspapers have been closed, journalists jailed and students penalised for engaging in any sort of political activity in Iran.

[Rasputin]

http://samiramohyeddin.blogspot.com/2006/12/iran-holocaust-conference-wrap-up.html

[Rasputin]

Holocaust denial can be dangerous
Iran's two-day conference for revisionists can't be shrugged off given its quest for nuclear weapons.
December 13, 2006


WHAT'S THE perfect way to top off a Holocaust denial conference featuring input from the likes of such scholars as former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke? Why, calling for Israel's obliteration, of course.

Iran wrapped its two-day gathering of neo-Nazis, hard-line racists and half-baked historians with a rousing speech from Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Tuesday. The man who once called the murder of 6 million European Jews a "myth" cheerfully told delegates from 30 countries that Israel's days were numbered.
"As the Soviet Union disappeared, the Zionist regime will also vanish and humanity will be liberated," Ahmadinejad predicted. Historical analogies aren't his strong suit.

Before the summit, Iranian officials vowed that if the conference, using its doubtlessly rigorous scientific inquiry, should determine that the Holocaust indeed occurred, then Iran would at long last accept it as historical fact. We are not holding our breath.

Although it's tempting to shrug off a gathering of fourth-rate intellects who seethe with contempt even for each other (did Duke discuss his theories about white racial superiority?), the conference illustrated a present and growing danger to the international community: Iran is on the path to becoming a nuclear power. Any promise to "remove" its neighbors from the map must be taken seriously.

Ahmadinejad's rejection of the thousands of written and oral testimonies of Holocaust survivors, reams of scholarship, films, photographs, diaries and detailed Nazi archives has nothing to do with evidentiary standards and everything to do with playing to the extremists in his regional audience. To Ahmadinejad, attacking the legitimacy of the Holocaust allows him to attack the legitimacy of Israel, which was created by the United Nations as a result of the Holocaust. If the first act didn't happen, then the second act wasn't necessary.

The Iranian president wrapped his hateful nonsense in the false mantle of free speech. Conference delegates, he said, were breaking free from the powerful opposition to critiquing the Holocaust narrative and finally being allowed to say what they pleased.

Except for Khaled Mahameed, an Israeli Arab who tried to attend the conference. Mahameed runs a Holocaust museum in Nazareth geared to Arab audiences and had planned to debate the deniers. But when he tried to get a visa, Iran turned him down.

For Ahmadinejad, there is still at least one powerful taboo: the truth

[Rasputin]

A gathering in Iran billed as a conference to “debate” the Nazi annihilation of six million Jews continued on its second day to spark outrage in the West, drawing fierce criticism today from European leaders, the Vatican and the White House.

The hail of criticism came as President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told participants of the conference in Tehran today that a committee should be set up to investigate whether the Holocaust occurred. Among the more than 60 participants in the conference was the former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke, who asserted today that Israel feared an inquiry into the Holocaust more than it did the prospect of Iranian nuclear weapons.

The Vatican today called the Holocaust an “immense tragedy” for all humanity, and it issued a statement that there was no doubt that the Holocaust took place and that it must serve as a warning for people to respect the rights of others. The statement used the Hebrew word for the Holocaust, Shoah, and expressed “great compassion” for what happened to the Jews during World War II, according to Agence France-Presse.

[Rasputin]

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert asked Pope Benedict on Wednesday to denounce personally a conference in Iran questioning the Holocaust, an Olmert aide said, to reinforce criticism of it by the Vatican.

The Israeli leader and the head of the world's one billion Roman Catholics spoke for about 40 minutes at the Vatican. Olmert, on a tour of Germany and Italy, renewed a standing invitation for the Pontiff to visit the Holy Land.

"The prime minister asked the pope to talk about the Holocaust denial conference and not just to stop with a statement," said Olmert's spokesperson, Miri Eisin.

She was referring to a toughly worded statement by the Vatican on Tuesday criticising a conference hosted by Iran to question whether Nazi Germany used gas chambers.

Iran has been accused of encouraging the denial of the killing of six million Jews during World War II.

The Vatican statement said the Holocaust must remain forever a warning to respect the rights of others. Using the Hebrew word for the Holocaust, Shoah, it expressed "great compassion".

The pope did not give an immediate response to Olmert's invitation but has already told Israeli leaders he would like to visit the Holy Land next year. The first pope to go there was the late John Paul on an historic trip in 2000, after leading the Vatican to forge diplomatic relations with the Jewish state.

Olmert and the pope also discussed outstanding details of a bilateral agreement between the Vatican and Israel regarding property ownership and taxation of the church.

The Israeli aide said Benedict also complemented Olmert on "the restraint he has shown" to keep a ceasefire going in Gaza.

A Vatican statement said that the pope, Olmert and Vatican diplomats discussed Middle East prospects, the situation of the Catholic minority there and access to Christian sites in the Holy Land over the coming Christmas season. -- Reuters

[Rasputin]

شصت و هفت شرکت کننده از سی کشور جهان در همايشی با عنوان "هولوکاست، چشم انداز جهانی" در تهران گرد هم آمدند که در ميان آنها عده ای يهودی ارتودکس نيز حضور داشتند.
اما انگيزه اين يهوديان از حضور در اين همايش انکار هولوکاست نبوده است. بلکه آنها می گويند با اين مخالفند که از اين واقعه برای توجيه ايجاد کشور اسراييل استفاده شود.

اين يهوديان با کلاه سياه و ريش بلندشان، در ظاهر تفاوت چندانی با ساير يهوديان ارتودکس ندارند، اما در واقع آنها متعلق به شاخه های خاصی از دين يهود هستند.

برخی از اين يهوديان ارتودکس به گروهی موسوم به "نتورای کارتا" يا "پاسداران شهر" متعلق هستند. از ديد چند هزار يهودی ارتودکسی که عضو اين گروه هستند، صهيونيسم "سمی" است که "يهوديان واقعی" را تهديد می کند.

خاخام آرون کوهن، از اعضای همين گروه، طی سخنانی در کنفرانس هولوکاست در تهران گفت که او دعا می کند "ريشه درگيری و خونريزی در خاورميانه، يعنی کشور اسراييل، بطور صلح آميز از ميان برچيده شود."


من فیلم های مربوط به هولوکاست را دیدم. واقعا وحشتناکه. البته اعتقاد دارم ممکن است در تعداد کشته شدگان اغراق شده باشد و نباید جلوی تحقیق را گرفت. منتها دولت ایران تنها قصد تمسخر دارد.


او افزود که جای اسراييل را بايد حکومتی بگيرد که "با آرزوهای فلسطينيان سازگاری کامل دارد، بطوری که اعراب و يهوديان بتوانند با صلح و صفا کنار هم زندگی کنند، همانطور که قرنها اين کار را می کردند."

"پاسداران شهر" معتقد هستند که نفس ايجاد کشور اسراييل اساسا با مذهب يهوديت در تضاد است.

آنها می گويند، بر اساس تلمود يا کتاب قوانين يهوديت، يهوديان نبايد تا پيش از ظهور "ماشيح" يا "منجی جهان" برای ايجاد يک کشور يهودی به زور متوسل شوند.

در کنار اعضايی از گروه "پاسداران شهر" که به تهران آمده بودند يهوديان ارتودوکس ديگری هم ديده می شدند. کسانی مانند خاخام موشه آير فريدمان، ساکن اتريش. او به بی بی سی گفت که قصدش از سفر به تهران بحث در مورد واقعی يا غير واقعی بودن "هولوکاست" نبوده، بلکه هدفش بررسی درسهايی بوده که از اين واقعه می توان آموخت.

خاخام فريدمان می گويد که هولوکاست تبديل به ابزاری شده که اقداماتی را که مايه رنج ديگران است، مشروع جلوه دهد.

به اعتقاد او هدف از به ميان کشيدن مسئله هولوکاست، نشان دادن درد و رنج يهوديان در گذشته نيست، بلکه استفاده ابزاری از آن برای به دست آوردن "قدرت تجاری، نظامی و رسانه ای" است.

خاخام کوهن از گروه "پاسداران شهر" طی سخنرانی خود در تهران گفت که هيچ ترديدی در مورد اينکه هولوکاست اتفاق افتاده وجود ندارد و افزود "هرگونه تلاش در جهت کوچک جلوه دادن گناه اين جنايت، توهينی است بسيار بد به خاطره قربانيان آن."

با اين حال او نسل کشی هولوکاست را مشيت الهی خواند و گفت "صهيونيستها به خود جرات می دهند که بگويند هولوکاست هرگز نبايد تکرار شود. آنها می خواهند جلوی خواست خدا بايستند و اين کفر است."

جنبش "پاسداران شهر" توسط ساير يهوديان ارتودکس محکوم شده اند. پارلمان اسراييل نيز کنفرانس تهران را محکوم کرده است.

[Rasputin]

برگزارى كنفرانس هولوكاست در ايران واكنش كاخ سفيد، آلمان، سوييس،* واتيكان و جمعى از يهوديان را به دنبال داشت.

به گزارش خبرگزارى دانشجويان ايران (ايسنا)، خبرگزارى فرانسه گزارش داد، دانا پرينو، سخنگوى كاخ سفيد به خبرنگاران گفت: آمريكا كنفرانس هولوكاست را كه روز دوشنبه از سوى ايران در تهران برگزار شد، محكوم مي*كند.

وى ادامه داد: همايش منكران هولوكاست در تهران بي*احترامى به تمامى جهان متمدن و نيز ارزش*هاى سنتى ايران نسبت به شكيبايى و احترام دوجانبه است.

پرينو گفت: در حالى كه مردم سراسر جهان هفته بين*المللى حقوق بشر را گرامى مي*دارند و تعهدات به بيانيه جهانى حقوق بشر را كه در آستانه*ى جنايات جنگ جهانى دوم تدوين شد احيا مي*كند، رژيم ايران درصدد آن است كه واقعيت تاريخى آن جنايات را زير سوال ببرد و سكويى را براى تنفر فراهم كند.

بر اساس گزارش آسوشيتدپرس،* واتيكان نيز در بيانيه*اى در ارتباط با كنفرانس دو روزه*ى هولوكاست در ايران اعلام كرد: هولوكاست تراژدى بزرگى است كه نمي*توانيم نسبت به آن بي*تفاوت باشيم.

در اين بيانيه آمده است: يادبود آن وقايع هولناك بايد هشدارى براى وجدان مردم باشد تا درگيري*ها را پايان دهند، به حقوق همه*ى مردم احترام گذارند و به صلح و حقيقت و عدالت ترغيب كنند.

سوييس نيز در متهم نمودن كنفرانس هولوكاست در ايران به ساير كشورهاى اروپايى پيوست.

پايگاه اينترنتى سوييس اينفو گزارش داد كه يك سخنگوى وزارت امور خارجه*ى سوييس ترديد در وقوع هولوكاست را غير قابل قبول خواند.

خبرگزارى رويتر نيز گزارش داد، آنگلا مركل، صدراعظم آلمان در كنفرانس خبرى مشترك با ايهود المرت، نخست وزير رژيم صهيونيستى گفت: آلمان هرگز ترديد درباره هولوكاست را نخواهد پذيرفت و به هر شكلى كه بتواند با آن مقابله خواهد كرد.

مركل و المرت برگزارى كنفرانس هولوكاست در تهران را محكوم كردند.

مركل گفت: آلمان هرگز اين را نخواهد پذيرفت و از تمامى امكاناتى كه در اختيار داريم براى مخالفت با آن استفاده خواهيم كرد.

يوهان آشليمان، سخنگوى وزارت امور خارجه*ى سوييس اعلام كرد كه اين وزارت هرگونه ترديد در برابر حق موجوديت اسراييل را كه قبلا نيز در تهران رخ داده بود و هم*چنين انكار واقعه هولوكاست را محكوم مي*كند.

وى افزود: اين يك واقعه تاريخى است و زير سوال بردن آن غيرقابل قبول است.

به گزارش خبرگزارى فرانسه، *يك سازمان در آمريكاى لاتين كه نماينده بزرگترين جامعه يهوديان مي*باشد، از همايشى كه در ايران برگزار شد و طى آن محمود احمدي*نژاد واقعه هولوكاست را زير سوال برد انتقاد كردند.

اين گروه از دولت سنتور كيوچنر، رييس جمهور آرژانتين خواست كه اين همايش را كه به بررسى رخداد هولوكاست مي*پردازد بي*اعتبار اعلام كنند.

براساس گزارش خبرگزارى آسوشيتدپرس،* واتيكان اعلام كرد كه هولوكاست يك تراژدى بزرگ است كه بايد به عنوان هشدارى براى وجدان مردم باشد.

واتيكان در بيانيه*اى در ارتباط با كنفرانس دو روزه هولوكاست در ايران اعلام كرد: هولوكاست تراژدى بزرگى است كه نمي*توانيم نسبت به آن بي*تفاوت باشيم.

در اين بيانيه آمده است: يادبود آن وقايع هولناك بايد هشدارى براى وجدان مردم باشد تا درگيري*ها را پايان دهند، به حقوق همه*ى مردم احترام گذارند و به صلح و حقيقت و عدالت ترغيب كنند.