Freiburg/Berlin, Germany: Central Council of Jews in Germany Criticizes State Secretary and the Mayor of Freiburg for Welcoming Mohammad Khatami

The Central Council of Jews in Germany criticized the Social Democratic Foreign Ministry State Secretary Gernot Erler and the Green Party’s mayor of Freiburg, Dieter Salomon for welcoming Mohammed Khatami, the former president of Iran.

On October 28, Khatami was invited by the University of Freiburg to hold a lecture on “Dialogue between the Islamic and Western World”.

The vice president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Dieter Graumann and its General Secretary Stephan J. Kramer wrote an open letter that: "the obvious attempt to appease the mullah regime through politics, economics, education and culture has failed across the board. On the contrary, the policy of appeasement has prolonged the agony and suffering of the Iranian people and minorities and has gained the mullah regime valuable time not only to come much closer to the attainment of nuclear weapons, but also to further the destabilization of the Middle East and further spread Islamic terrorism in the world."

Gernot Erler wrote in a response to the Central Council that “the use of communication channels with important figures in Iran” should be pursued to “influence internal opinion making” in Iran.

Source: Jerusalem Post, 11-22-2008

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