After a trial lasting more than three weeks, the Paris Criminal Court today acquitted Bernard Lecache, president of the International League Against Anti-Semitism, of a charge of libel leveled against him by a man he had publicly called “neo-Nazi.”
The plaintiff was Paul Rassinier, writer and lecturer, who had claimed in his public statements that Nazi death camps had “practically never existed,” that such reports were only “parts of Jewish propaganda,” and that most Jewish casualties during World War II were caused “by their fellow concentration camp inmates who stole their food and maltreated them.” In his organization’s periodical, “The Right to Live,” M. Lecache called Rassinier “a neo-Nazi who, together with his friends, had reached the depths of infamy.”
In acquitting M. Lecache, the court ruled that “the plaintiff’s outrage against the Resistance movement, and the lack of respect toward war victims, justified the indignation expressed in the writings of the defendant.” The court also upheld the right of M. Lecache to protest against the plaintiff’s “outrageous affirmations.”
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
