GERMANY: The German government sacked the commander of the prestigious KSK special forces yesterday after he praised a lawmaker who had sparked outrage with comments widely interpreted as belittling the Holocaust.
Defence Minister Mr Peter Struck said he had ordered the dismissal of Brigadier Reinhard Guenzel, who had written a letter of support to Mr Martin Hohmann, a conservative deputy who said Jews, like Germans, could be seen as "perpetrators".
"Such comments damage Germany's reputation and, as far as the general is concerned, he has damaged the reputation of the German army and immediate consequences had to be taken," Mr Struck said.
"This is about a lone, confused general who agreed with an even more confused statement made by a conservative member of parliament," the minister told reporters.
The remarks by Brig Guenzel (59), who told Mr Hohmann that most Germans shared the lawmaker's views, are embarrassing for Germany, where remarks by public figures critical of Jews or Israel often trigger uproar because of the country's Nazi past.
The leader of Germany's Jewish community, Mr Paul Spiegel, said Mr Hohmann's comments showed that anti-Jewish sentiment was becoming more socially acceptable in Germany.
"How can a German government, how can a German political party, accept that such statements are made from their ranks? People abroad can't understand it," Mr Spiegel told German radio.
In a speech to his constituency on October 3rd, Mr Hohmann said that while Germans were constantly atoning for their Holocaust guilt, other peoples had also committed crimes.
He said many Bolsheviks of Jewish descent had taken part in mass executions during the 1917 Russian revolution and Jews, like Germans, could therefore be called "perpetrators".
Mr Hohmann drew rebuke from all the main political parties including his own, the opposition Christian Democrats (CDU).
After initially refusing to apologise, Mr Hohmann said at the weekend that he was sorry for hurting anybody's feelings and he had not meant to deny the "uniqueness" of the Holocaust.
Mr Hohmann, himself a reserve major in the German army, read Brig Guenzel's letter of support out to the ZDF television channel.
"An excellent speech - if I may make this judgment - which one rarely hears and reads in such courageous clarity and truth in our country," he quoted Brig Guenzel as writing.
"Even if public opinion labels all those who agree with your opinion or even articulate it loudly and clearly as being far right, you can be sure that you are clearly expressing the view of the majority of our nation," the letter said.
Brig Guenzel, who studied history, has been a Bundeswehr soldier for 40 years and led the KSK for three. The KSK is considered on a par with the world's top elite forces such as the US's Delta Force or Britain's SAS.
Yesterday, CDU leaders condemned Mr Hohmann's comments and removed him from a parliamentary committee where he had dealt with German reparation payments to Nazi era slave labourers. But they have drawn fire for stopping short of expelling him from the party. The German Jewish Council has filed a legal complaint against Mr Hohmann for inciting racial hatred.