Lithuania bans Holocaust denier David Irving for 5 years

Lithuania has banned British Holocaust denier David Irving from entering the Baltic country for five years, the dpa news agency reports.

British Holocaust denier David Irving. (JTA)

The 81-year-old is the author of “Hitler’s War,” a book that attempts to minimize both Nazi atrocities and Hitler’s responsibility for them.

“The spread of his ideas denying the Holocaust and praising [Nazi leader] Adolf Hitler is a crime in Lithuania and we can’t allow such crimes to be committed,” Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius tells the BNS news agency, according to the report.

Polish authorities have said they will deny Irving’s entry when he comes for a planned tour in the country later this year.