And the Silence is Deafening
Yesterday I blogged about Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad‘s comment that the Holocaust is a myth.
Today I went searching for comments about this and here is a sample of what I found:
EU to condemn Iran leader on Israel, warn on nukes
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union leaders were set to condemn Iran’s president for denying the Holocaust and warn Tehran the opportunity for a diplomatic solution to its nuclear programme cannot stay open forever, diplomats said on Thursday.
A summit statement drafted by EU foreign ministers said of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s statement that the Nazi mass extermination of Jews was a myth: “These comments are wholly unacceptable and have no place in civilised political debate.”
It also voiced grave concern at Iran’s failure to remove suspicions about its nuclear intentions and said: “The window of opportunity will not remain open indefinitely.”
and
Russia condemns Ahmadinejad’s Holocaust remarks
“MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia on Thursday condemned Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for denying the Holocaust happened, saying his remarks were unacceptable and ran counter to the principles of the United Nations.
Ahmadinejad said on Wednesday that the Holocaust — the systematic killing of six million Jews by the Nazis in World War Two — was a myth, reiterating comments that drew international condemnation last week.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry, employing language it has used before in reacting to anti-Israel statements by Ahmadinejad, said: “We consider attempts to revise generally known historical facts about the Second World War, including those facts connected with the Holocaust, as unacceptable.”
“Speculation on these topics runs counter to the Charter of the United Nations and the views of the international community,” it said in a statement.”
And then I went searching for the Arab response because I thought surely someone, somewhere will have said something, but there was nothing. Sadly I wasn’t disappointed.
Arab States Silent Over Iranian President’s Comments Denying Holocaust
By TAREK AL-ISSAWI Associated Press Writer
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates Dec 15, 2005 — Arab governments appeared reluctant Thursday to condemn Iran’s president for calling the Holocaust a “myth” used by Europeans to create a Jewish state in the heart of the Islamic world.
While official Arab reaction in such cases is usually slower than international reaction, any issue involving a defense of Israel is a thorny one for Arab governments, who risk appearing to side with Israel against a Muslim nation.
The comments by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, broadcast live Wednesday on state-run Iranian television, drew quick condemnation from Israel, the European Union and the United States.While official Arab reaction in such cases is usually slower than international reaction, any issue involving a defense of Israel is a thorny one for Arab governments, who risk appearing to side with Israel against a Muslim nation.”
Ok, so maybe they are slow, but certainly they’ll say something or discuss it in some fashion
“However, in the United Arab Emirates, the top three Arabic-language newspapers buried the remarks deep in their Thursday editions, with no commentary. Newspapers in the country are government-controlled.
In neighboring Saudi Arabia, government-controlled newspapers picked up the statements from international news agencies and ran them on inside pages. They did not comment on them.
Arabic language newspapers circulated widely in the Arab world, such as the London-based Al-Hayat and Asharq Al-Awsat, carried the news on their front pages, but also without editorials.”
The silence is deafening and some would say very telling about the prospects for peace. How very sad.
Zeruel December 16, 2005 at 1:32 pm
I must say i also don’t quite understand the purposes behind Ahmed’s remarks. All he accomplishes with it is diplomatic isolation and further suspicion about Irans alleged nuclear program. With Ahmeds stupid remarks there will be more incentives to bring Iran in front of the unsec, something the US and Israel will certainly support, which will lead to economic sanctions and further degression into a pariah state.
Why is he so self-destructive? One reason could be that outside pressure(primarily from the U.S.) that encroached Ahmeds predecessor Khatami who was comparatively milder in international relations(also opening its doors for IAEA inspections in Bushehr) paved the way for a moron like Ahmed.
Ahmed is so dumb. He is just playing into the cards of his enemies.
Anonymous December 16, 2005 at 1:20 pm
The Arabs have other contemplations. They have pockets of islamic militants in their midst that already consider their governments to be American collaborators. Any disregard for Ahmed’s delusions will be seen as further proof of this. In an attempt not to further alienate followers of islamic orthodoxy, who indeed think of Israel as a foreign infiltrator, the Arab regimes will keep their mouth shut.
Maybe that is regrettable, but tactical considerations will always precede a friendly diplomatic gesture.
Ezzie December 16, 2005 at 5:30 am
Jack – any way you can link to this?
HH Announcement