海角大神

As Israel and the聽United States聽condemn Iran for allowing a Holocaust-themed聽cartoon聽festival to go on display in聽Tehran, the Iranian regime says it won't聽censor what it says is free speech.聽聽

"Why does the United States have the Ku Klux Klan? Is the government of the United States responsible for the fact that there are racially hateful聽organizations聽in the United States?" Mohammad聽Javad聽Zarif, Iran's foreign minister, asked The聽New Yorker, when asked聽.听听听

"Don't consider Iran a聽monolith," he said. "The Iranian government does not support, nor does it organize, any cartoon festival of the nature that you're talking about.聽When you stop your own聽organizations聽from doing things, then you can ask others to do likewise."聽聽

Although聽Zarif聽said a聽non-governmental聽organization聽was responsible for the event, The Washington Post, in an editorial that criticised Zarif's聽comments,聽reported聽the government聽聽it. The Iranian newspaper聽Hahmshari聽also helped organize the contest. 聽

Regardless,聽Israeli and American criticism聽and聽Zarif's聽reply raise what many see as double standards on each side when it comes to minimizing the Holocaust and drawing Muhammad, as the festival's origins聽trace back聽to聽Jyllands-Posten聽and Charlie Hebdo's聽Muhammad聽cartoons.听听听

This year聽is the second International Holocaust Cartoon Contest聽to be held in Tehran. The first came in聽response to the printing in 2005聽by聽Jyllands-Posten, a Danish newspaper, of a series of cartoons聽that mocked Muslim prophet, igniting protests聽across the聽world.聽聽

At the time, the US said that while聽it agreed that the cartoons were offensive聽to聽Muslims, it would also聽. Iran, meanwhile, recalled its ambassador from Denmark, expelled聽Danish journalists and聽ordered contracts be canceled with countries in which media published the cartoons.

The聽newspaper聽said its intention was聽to challenge the West's concepts of free speech聽by ","聽The New York Times reported, as well responding聽to the rebuke President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad received when he said the Holocaust is a聽myth. 聽

"The idea of the contest is to expose what some here see as Western hypocrisy for condemning聽Ahmadinejad, while invoking freedom of expression when it comes to cartoons that many Muslims said were deeply offensive," wrote The New York Times.聽聽

The winning cartoon聽depicted a construction crane,聽with an Israeli Star of David,聽building a wall in Jerusalem that resembles the West Bank barrier wall. On聽the wall in the cartoon聽is an聽image of the entrance to the Auschwitz鈥揃irkenau extermination camp.聽Although聽Zarif聽said the聽organizers of this year's festival are different, their aim is the same 鈥撀爃ighlight the hypocrisy of聽Western free聽speech.听听听

"We do not mean to approve or deny the Holocaust,"聽Masud聽Shojaei-Tabatabai, the event organizer, told the Tehran Times. "The main question is why is there no permission to talk about the Holocaust," adding their intention is to criticize Israel's treatment of Palestinians.聽聽

In the contest are 150 cartoons from 50 countries, many of which portray Israel as using the Holocaust to conceal Palestinian suffering, Palestinian prisoners behind concentration camp-style wire fences, or聽, according to the Associated Press.聽聽

As satirical as the entries may be, they also play聽into a widespread denial of the Holocaust聽in Iran and the Middle East, as well as into the belief that Israel is using the genocide聽as a pretext for its creation and to聽excuse聽its treatment of Palestinians, according to the Associated press.聽聽

Iran has聽a long history of promoting聽groups committed to Israel's destruction, including Hezbollah and Hamas,聽and the Iranian regime routinely issues calls聽for Israel's annihilation. Mr. Netanyahu聽fears聽Iran's聽attempts to develop a nuclear weapon are聽to obliterate the Jewish state.聽聽

The prime minister condemned the聽cartoon festival, and asked other countries to join him.聽聽

"It denies the Holocaust, it mocks the Holocaust and it is also preparing another Holocaust," Netanyahu said at his weekly Cabinet meeting, the Associated Press reported. "I think that every country in the world must stand up and fully condemn this."聽

Mark Toner, the State Department spokesman, said the United States shared Netanyahu's concern the contest could "be used as a聽platform for Holocaust denial and revisionism and egregiously anti-Semitic speech, as it has in the past."聽

"Such offensive speech should be condemned by the authorities and civil society leaders rather than encouraged. We denounce any Holocaust denial and trivialization as inflammatory and abhorrent. It is insulting to the memory of the millions of people who died in the Holocaust,"聽said Mr. Toner.聽