The American Jewish Committee has demanded a response from UN Secretary General Kofi Annan regarding an anti-Semitic caricature exhibit and a Holocaust denial conference which took place in Iran during his visit there this week. The AJC claimed that the failure to give attention to the issue of anti-Semitism that is encouraged by the Iranian regime will be interpreted as a silent agreement or even worse. Annan did not officially condemn the exhibit.
Annan said that the murderous actions of the Nazis are undeniable historical facts. The Secretary General also said that “we must teach our children what happened during WWII and ensure these things do not happen again.”
As a reminder, the Iranian government has opened a Holocaust denial caricature contest in response to the publishing of Danish caricatures which mooched the Prophet Mohammad.
Iran has announced that they are planning to host a special conference this fall on the issue of denying the Holocaust. “The tragedy of the Jewish People is not a holy issue that we cannot discuss,” said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi during a press briefing.
Asefi added that that he visited Nazi camps in Eastern Europe and says it looks like an exaggeration.