In an interview published by El Mundo, Irving, who was jailed in Austria in 2006 for his opinions, stated: ‘I’m not all that interested in the Holocaust’
Eminent historians have condemned a Spanish newspaper’s decision to interview the controversial historian David Irving as part of its coverage to mark the 70th anniversary of the Second World War.
The Hitler specialist Sir Ian Kershaw, whose interview last Monday launched El Mundo’s commemorative series, said he – and most historians – would have pulled out had they known of Mr Irving’s participation.
In the interview published yesterday, Mr Irving once again played down the slaughter of millions of Jews during the Second World War, despite having served time in an Austrian jail for his extremist views.
“The Holocaust is just a slogan, a product like Kleenex or Xerox printers. They’ve turned it into a commercial phenomenon, and succeeded in making money out of it – producing films about it which have made millions,” said the 71-year-old Mr Irving, prompting fury and dismay in Israel.
Israel’s ambassador in Madrid, Raphael Schutz, condemned the interview as an insult to readers, to legitimate historians and to the concept of free speech. Mr Schutz said: “Everyone who knows anything about the issue knows that David Irving is nothing but… a con man.”
El Mundo justified publication on the grounds of freedom of expression and because Mr Irving was a…
