MIDDLE EAST: Israel has demanded the removal of a "horrifying" exhibit at the Anne Frank Museum in Amsterdam that includes caricatures comparing Ariel Sharon to Adolf Hitler.
The museum has defended the exhibit, saying it is intended to explore the limits of free speech and includes criticism of the caricatures, which appear in video footage of a demonstration against Israel. "It is a horrifying exhibition," said Israel's president, Mr Moshe Katzav. "The attempt to attribute to Israel's leaders acts which contravene humanitarian values is a distortion and is offensive."
A museum spokeswoman said: "The exhibit the Israelis object to is about the present-day manifestation of anti-semitism.
"It includes video footage of a demonstration against Israel in Amsterdam in April 2002 at which some people carried banners that had pictures of Hitler and Sharon and asked the question, 'Do you see a difference, because we don't?' " The video is shown on a split screen. On the other side is criticism of the banners and other aspects of the demonstration. - (Guardian Service)