The claimant maintained that he had been libelled in a book entitled ‘Denying the Holocaust – The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory’, written by the second defendant and published by the first. The plaintiff was an historian, and it was said that the plaintiff had denied the holocaust, and was a racist and anti-semite.
Held: ‘Irving is anti-semitic. His words are directed against Jews, either individually or collectively, in the sense that they are by turns hostile, critical, offensive and derisory in their references to semitic people, their characteristics and appearances. A few examples will suffice: Irving has made claims that the Jews deserve to be disliked; that they brought the Holocaust on themselves; that Jewish financiers are crooked; that Jews generate anti-semitism by their greed and mendacity; that it is bad luck for Mr Wiesel to be called ‘Weasel’; that Jews are amongst the scum of humanity; that Jews scurry and hide furtively, unable to stand the light of day; that Simon Wiesenthal has a hideous, leering evil face; and so on.’
The defence of justification succeeded.
Judges:
Gray J
Citations:
[2000] EWHC QB 115
Links:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Defamation
Updated: 30 May 2022; Ref: scu.135946