Haaretz Via Forward Reports: On Holocaust Remembrance Day, Dan Shacham, Israel’s non-resident ambassador to Africa, met one of the most notorious dictators in the world, Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe. Mugabe, who is considered one of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s closest associates, has been slapped with harsh sanctions by Egypt and the European Union for grave human rights violations and “blood diamond” trade.
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Yigal Palmor noted that the ambassador was aware of the sensitive timing of their meeting and therefore invited the Zimbabwe Jewish community’s rabbi, Moshe Silberhaft, to the credentials ceremony. “Throughout the ceremony, the two told President Mugabe of the special meaning of Holocaust Remembrance Day, and the latter even discussed the matter in great lengths,” said Palmor.
