Delve into Dutch teens’ praise of Hitler, Jewish group urges

Advertisement

(JTA) — A Dutch Jewish group called on Holland to probe anti-Semitism in its high schools following interviews with immigrant students in which they praised the Holocaust and hating Jews.

The Center for Information and Documentation on Israel was responding to a program that aired last week on the Nederland 2 television channel on which Mehmet Sahin, a researcher at Amsterdam’s Vrije Universiteit, interviews several high school students of Turkish descent.

“Anti-Semitic biases seem much more widespread than earlier presumed among children of immigrant families as well as native Dutch pupils,” CIDI, a Hague-based watchdog on anti-Semitism, wrote to Jet Bussemaker, the country’s minister of education, culture and science, on Tuesday. “A national survey is required to study the figures and numbers.

“The interviewees appear to be partly aware of the Holocaust but approve of the mass murder of Jews."

One of the interviewees said on camera, “I am more than pleased with what Hitler did to the Jews.” Another said, “I hate Jews, period. Nothing you will do will make me change my mind.”

Recommended from JTA

Advertisement