Unesco has now withdrawn its funding from the Palestinian youth magazine Zayzafouna, following reports that it featured a story which held up Hitler as a role model. The Telegraph article quotes the editor’s response:
The magazine’s director, Shareef Samhan, did not dispute the translation, though he said the girl was “accusing” Hitler and not praising him. He said he had not been aware of the text and noted that Unesco was not a central backer of the magazine.
He defended the publication.
“We depend in the content of our magazine on the participation of school students, and it’s not our job to prohibit the freedom of speech,” he said.
A lot of excuses there, none of them convincing.
The Telegraph also reports a PA reaction:
A spokesman for the Palestinian Authority, Ghassan Khatib, said the article was “not acceptable.”
“We educate young people in our textbooks about the Holocaust and the massacres of Hitler against Jews and against others, and we refer to these massacres as crimes against humanity,” Mr Khatib said. “This instance is exceptional, and the editor will try to be more careful in the future.”
