Anne Frank Center guide compares Jews under Nazis to Palestinians under Israel

The Anne Frank Center in Berlin distances itself from the statement of a freelance guide who compared the suffering of Jews under the Nazis to that of Palestinians under Israeli occupation.

At issue was a profile of Nesreen Hajjaj, a 24-year-old Berliner of Palestinian background, in the July 19 online English version of Al Arabiya, a Saudi-owned news outlet. Hajjaj is one of 25 freelance guides who introduce visitors to the exhibition at the Anne Frank Zentrum Berlin.

Hajjaj tells the interviewer that “many things that happened to the Jews during the Nazi rule are happening to the Palestinians now. Jewish people were kicked out of their homes and denied an education. Today Palestinian lands and houses are being conquered,” she tells the online publication.

She says she has been called an “infidel and a hypocrite” on social media for taking the job with the center.

Her answer to critics: “We must be open-minded toward different people, especially if you live within their societies.”

Patrick Siegele, director of the Anne Frank Zentrum, tells JTA that Hajjaj’s comment was “incorrect and painful … and does not reflect the official position of the Anne Frank Zentrum. Furthermore, the Anne Frank Zentrum distances itself from this position.”

— JTA