Palestinian Media Watch Bulletin, December 20, 2011.

“I killed them [the Jews] so you would all know

that they are a nation

which spreads destruction all over the world.”

The Zayzafuna youth magazine of the PLO chose to publish an essay written by a girl in 10th grade in which Hitler is admired because he killed the Jews – an act that is presented as a positive accomplishment for the benefit of humanity. The girl describes a dream in which she meets four historical figures, all of whom are presented as admired role models, and each one’s special accomplishment is the topic of a short conversation with the girl.

Three of them are the ninth-century Muslim mathematician Al-Khwarizmi; Nobel Prize-winning Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz; and Saladin, the Muslim leader who defeated the Christian Crusaders and conquered Jerusalem in the 12th century. The fourth and only non-Muslim role model in the dream is Adolf Hitler.

All four are presented as positive figures and each one offers advice to the young girl, which she accepts. Hitler is admired because he killed the Jews:

“I turned to the next door; there Hitler awaited me. I said, ‘You’re the one who killed the Jews?’

He [Hitler] said: ‘Yes. I killed them so you would all know that they are a nation which spreads destruction all over the world. And what I ask of you is to be resilient and patient, concerning the suffering that Palestine is experiencing at their hands.’

I said [to Hitler]: ‘Thanks for the advice.'”

[Zayzafuna, February 2011]

Although repugnant, a Palestinian teenager’s admiration for Hitler because he killed Jews, alongside other Muslim role models, is not unexpected. As PMW documents, Palestinian children are brought up with the teaching that killing Israelis and Jews is heroic. The PA has named streets, schools, sporting events and more after Palestinian terrorists who have killed hundreds of Israeli civilians.

In Palestinian cultural, educational and social events, every Palestinian child is exposed to repeated glorification of terrorists who have killed Jews. Palestinian children have participated in summer camps named after Dalal Mughrabi who led a bus hijacking in which 37 civilians were killed, and played in football tournaments named after Abd Al-Basset Odeh, a suicide bomber who killed 31 Israelis at a Passover dinner. It is not surprising that a Palestinian child who has been educated to see those who have murdered Jews as heroes and role models will conclude that Hitler, the one who murdered the most Jews in history, is likewise worthy of admiration.

About the publishers and advisory staff of Zayzafuna

The magazine is published by the Zayzafuna Association for Development of Children’s Culture, and sponsored by the PLO’s Palestinian National Committee for Education, Culture and Sciences.  The magazine’s advisory board is comprised of Palestinian Authority officials and educators, including PA Deputy Minister of Education Jihad Zakarneh, and former PA Minister for Women’s Affairs Zuheira Kamal. [Zayzafuna, February 2011]

The Zayzafuna magazine is part of a larger education program funded by the Palestinian Authority which contributed 90,000 Shekel ($24,370) in 2010 and 10,000 Shekel ($2,700) a month in 2011.  Since August 2011, the magazine is also sponsored by UNESCO and the MDG Achievement Fund (MDG-F), a UN humanitarian foundation funded by the Spanish government. [Zayzafuna, August 2011.] In the October 2011 issue a note appears: “Opinions expressed in this magazine don’t necessarily express UNESCO’s views.”

Deputy Chairman of the Zayzafuna organization Abd Al-Karim Ziyada has explained the following about the funding of Zayzafuna: “We are fortunate in that the Palestinian Authority and the Prime Minister [Salam Fayyad] have helped us this year with aid in the amount of 90,000 Shekel ($24,370) to cover the magazine and organization costs, and that has given us a push forward. Allah be praised.” [PA TV (Fatah), May 9 and 13, 2011]

Update December 24:

UNESCO has stopped funding of the magazine.