Founder of Islamic Movement, in Israel, slams Holocaust denial

[Behind the Aegis]

The founder of the Islamic Movement in Israel condemned Holocaust denial in the Muslim world on Sunday, rejecting statements by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

In an appearance before the Global Forum for Combating Anti-Semitism in Jerusalem, Sheikh Abdullah Nimr Darwish said: "Tell all who deny the Holocaust to ask the Germans what they did or did not do."

Also, Darwish accused his audience of not understanding Muslims or their concerns, and he protested Israel's refusal to support the recent Saudi Arabian peace initiative involving Hamas and Fatah. "Why are you trying to distance yourselves from Muslims as if they were the devil?" he said.

The fourth Global Forum for Combating Anti-Semitism, which opened Sunday in Jerusalem and was sponsored for the first time by the Foreign Ministry, drew 160 participants from Israel and abroad. Among them are politicians and foreign diplomats who deal with the problem of anti-Semitism.


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