Boston College Third World Law Journal Volume 23 | Issue 2 Article 4 5-1-2003 A Fertile Ground: The Expansion of Holocaust Denial into the Arab World Michelle L. Picheny Follow this and additional works at: http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/twlj Part of the International Law Commons Recommended Citation Michelle L. Picheny, A Fertile Ground: The Expansion of Holocaust Denial into the Arab World, 23 B.C. Third World L.J. 331 (2003), http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/twlj/vol23/iss2/4 This Notes is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at Digital Commons @ Boston College Law School. It has been accepted for inclusion in Boston College Third World Law Journal by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Boston College Law School. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. A FERTILE GROUND: THE EXPANSION OF HOLOCAUST DENIAL INTO THE ARAB WORLD MICHELLE L. PICHENY* Abstract: Despite documentation of the atrocities of the Holocaust, there are those who deny its occurrence. Previously, the Holocaust denial movement had been confined to the western world. Western Holocaust deniers, however, faced with opposition and legal restriction by countries such as the United States, Canada, France, and Germany, have expanded their efforts into many Arab nations, such as Egypt, Syria, and the Palestinian Authority. While Holocaust-inspired anti Semitism is nothing new in these countries, the on-going Arab-Israeli conflict provides a fertile ground for efforts to promulgate Holocaust denial as a new anti-Semitic propaganda tool. Most disturbing is that many Arab governments and political leaders not only support, but even perpetuate Holocaust denial themselves.