A CZECH GAFFE

The Czech Republic’s prime minister, Milos Zeman, walked into a firestorm today after an interview with Ha’aretz in which he compared negotiating with Yasir Arafat to negotiating with Hitler. Here’s the BBC’s account. Notice the outrage among Arab countries, whose virulent anti-Semitism is certainly on a par with Hitler’s. Notice also the E.U.’s visceral hostility to any truth-speaking about the uncompromising hatred of Israel and Jews so prevalent in the Arab Middle East. The French government described any such comparison as “totally irresponsible.” But notice more the Palestinian Authority’s “culture” spokesman, who blithely comments, “The severity of the Israeli occupation matches only that of Nazi Germany, one of the victims of which was Czechoslovakia itself.” No word from the French on whether that comment is “totally irresponsible” as well.