People just dont get it. The importance of commemorating the Holocaust relates to all people first (by a long way), Jews second and Nazis a very distant last. Anyone who has died due to war can only hope for one legacy...that others will learn from his or her loss. Wars are eventually glorified in some form but the Holocaust cannot be yet we seem incapable of learning from it as a civilisation. And now, we are even making an effort to forget. Shame on us.

Dennis D'Maunice, Sydney, Australia

I had expected better of the UK. I am accustomed to craven pandering to minority "sensibilities" here in the States, but find it difficult to understand this phenomenon of Holocaust denial among the British; a people who sacrificed so much in the war against Nazi Germany.

Robert Goodell, Baltimore, USA

Before people freak out too much, bear in mind that the report only mentioned one or two teachers in small towns who did something like this -- to say that this is a common issue in UK schools is very misleading.

Anyone who wants to read the actual report can find it online.

AKS, Boynton Beach, FL

Joseph Kellie claims that "Israel [is] now treating the Palestinians, Lebanese and others nearly as badly [as the Nazis treated the Jews.]" This is false.

Non-Jewish citizens of Israel, be they Muslim, Druze, or Christian serve in the Israeli military, in elected office, and in the civil service-- something impossible for Jews under the Reich.

Furthermore, in all well researched instances of genocides both historical and recent, the targeted populations' numbers shrink, yet during the entire Arab-Israeli conflict, the Palestinian population has actually increased. The honus is on Mister Kellie to explain how this can possibly qualify as a genocide as he insinuates. Where are the mobile killing units? The extermination camps? The forced starvation? Without any recourse to facts or coherent argument, Kellie's opinions are not valid.

Ian Thal, Somerville, MA, USA

I survived Auschwitz and slave labor in a german factory on minimal food ration, no change of clothing, no heat or warm water and lots of lice, in the Sudeten from 1944 to 1945. The company's name was AEG, if you access their websites the good folks of the AEG they claim to be doing nothing between 1938 and 1945,nothing about armament production for the SS, nothing about slave labor.

Klara, West Palm Beach, Florida, USA

James, as you suggest, it is shocking that the United Nations should disown the Armenian Genocide for fear of antagonising Turkey. This, to me, illustrates how important it is that the Simon Wiesenthal Centre should be fearless in its recognition of those who have died as victims of genocide. It was Hitler who said that nobody remembered the Armenians when he invaded Poland and it was Raphael Lemkin who first recognised the enormity of the crime and what this might mean for humanity.

Charles, London, England

I believe that Mr Kellie's comments are not only an exaggeration but that he is not aware of the fact that the citizens of Israel suffer on a daily basis from attacks by their neighbours. Rockets are fired willy nilly from Gaza onto innocent citizens, soldiers have been kidnapped and no contact has been allowed. `The families do not know if their sons are alive or dead.

Imagine if France, for example, were to kidnap UK soldiers and the citizens of Dover would experience rockets falling on them from over the Channel. What would Mr Kellie's comments be then.

I think that Israel is in a very difficult position and what she needs is good public relations so that the outside world can appreciate why they have to respond.

carole smith, paris, france

If some European Muslims are denying the Holocaust, pressing the schools for dropping this subject from the curriculum, publish the Holocaust cartoons (yes, it is going on in Europe as well) and pressing the UK government for withdrawing from Holocaust commemoration events, then they are giving an argument to those who refuse to see them, in Europe, as victims of marginalization, xenophobia, nationalism, racism, etc., but rather see some of them as perpetrators of similar actions toward others.

James, Toronto, Canada

How on earth can any body call not teaching the Holocaust as politically correct......
I and my father are Muslims and my mother German (Protestant) we are greatly angered that some extremist groups who call themselves Muslims find offence in the teaching of such earth shattering and terrible historical facts..

A.T. Martin, Warsaw, Poland

This is not the case at all in the British school where my children go nor the case in the public school that my nephews attend in England where children are PROPERLY taught about the atrocities committed by Hitler's Nazi regime on 6 million Jews as well as on other people murdered by the Nazis.

To accuse British schools across the board of "failing to teach the genocide properly due to political correctness." is frankly going over the top.

I wonder why the the Simon Wiesenthal Centre felt the need to be so encompassing in their 'accusation?'

HILLBLOGGER3, Paris, France, France

It is a thin line between the Alan Johnson's approach and giving sections of the community approval for outright denial of history with predictable results - for example: Germany lost it position of leader in world prestige after the war .

Edmusnd Cress, cape town,

Millions of Jews were rounded up in Nazi occupied Europe, sent to concentration camps and murdered. 6 million perished. How dare anyone equate this with Israel's treatment of the Palestinians.

Sidney Wilner, Simi Valley, California USA

This criticism baffles me, given that the main complaint about the teaching of history in British schools, heard time and time again from renowned historians in Britain (including the Cambridge historians Michael Burleigh and David Starkey as well as the ex-Oxford, Harvard Professor Niall Ferguson), is that all that seems to be taught is Nazi Germany and that pupils know little or nothing about the history of Britain (or Germany, or Europe or indeed the World) outside the period 1933 to 1945.

My own experience is that many History teachers feel the same, and would gladly stop treating the subject as if the world began in 1933 and ended in 1945.

Francis Tuttle, Madrid,

Those who think that the state-funded education has some kind of duty to educate and enlighten the public according to the truthful facts are under an illusion. It is only to conform us to obedience to authority and unified national identity; the conception of your country is born there, the precise reason why we're not taught about the atrocities, massacres, etc which occurred under the false pretense of 'civilizing the unenlightened nations', under the name of 'British empire'.

Peter, Pittsburgh, US

I agree that the holocaust should be taught in schools and it is scandalous that this is being classified as "contentious history".

Why is it however, that the same respect and attention is not given to the transatlantic slave trade? This could be considered a comparable crime in terms of the suffering/degradation caused and also has a lingering legacy.

In contrast to the holocast denial, the fact that we are sweeping the slave trade under the carpet is due to politically incorrect motives rather than PC ones.

James Woody, London,

Our schools should not be used as vehicles for political propaganda. By anyone. Full stop.

John Thomas Goodey, Rochester, UK

It's a shame people forget about Stalin's purges, which killed an estimated 20 million, and the Russian sacrifice in the Second World War, amounting to 25 million. Whilst not a big fan of Russia and her politics, I think this is an important point to remember. Although the Holocaust was tragic, we should remember the many holocausts throughout history, and man's animosity towards man

Gavin Le Boutillier, Bilton, East Yorkshire

Joseph Kellie, the Arab-Israeli conflict has nothing to do with the Holocaust, but has everything to do with the Arab countries simultaneously attacking Israel on the first day of her existence. Loosing 1% of its population within a few months as Israel did on a number of occasions, would change the defence concept of any country. However, claiming that this is all started because of the Holocaust adds another item on their list of grievances against Europeans.

James, Toronto, Canada

Charles, the UN just canceled the exhibition about the Rwanda’s genocide because Turkey hasn’t approved a single note about the Armenians’ genocide, even thought it did not even contain a reference to Turkey (please read yesterday’s editorial in NY Times). How do you deal with this? After all the UN is much more powerful then the Simon Wiesenthal Centre and has a number of human rights bodies and affiliated NGOs with almost unlimited budgets.

James, Toronto, Canada

Those who do not remember history, are doomed to repeat it. Where is the most virulent anti semitism, apart from the peace loving Muslims? Look in the mirror URABIA.

Desmond Taylor, Houston, USA Texas

I agree that we should teach all about WWII and how it came about and how life for some was not even worth a bullet. At the same time we can discuss the aftermath and concessions given to the Jews after the war based on sympathy and how in the space of 60 years Israel are now treating the Palestinians, Lebanese and others nearly as badly.

At the moment it is a sad fact that even taking your family to the beach in Palestine could result in you being bombed out of existence by the Israeli's.

What the Germans allowed during WWII was attrocious but it is time to decide what should be allowed during conflicts and for the international community to protect the innocent children,mothers,fathers at the point of a gun. We should have and could have in Rawanda , Serbia, Croatia, Iraq, Afganistan, Zimbabwe, Palestine and Lebanon and we could look back and then say we have improved as a species.

I am not proud to be part of this species while it still allows to die on mass wiht impunity.

Joseph Kellie, edinburgh, scotland

The Simon Wiesenthal Centre has itself been wary of publicising details abot genocide. In 2003 there were many protests when its Museum of Tolerance excluded information about the Armenian Genocide for fear of damaging relations between Israel and Turkey. Of course, that in no way diminishes the importance of what is being said and commemorated today.

Charles, London, England

This is the state of education today in the U.S. as well. It is the price we pay when we cede important matters to people who simply are not competent to assume the responsibility, and the educational establishment has proven this time and again. We have paid an enormous price for permitting political correctness to run rampant. This would have been inconceivable not too many years ago.

George Ridler, Stockton, US, California

I respect the right and need of the citizens of Isreal to commenerate an historical event relevant to their state religion. Those same citizens and other jewish persons might want to reflect on why Gt Britain and her neighbours do not exist in a permanent state of bloody, yet undeclared, war with each other. I do not feel that non-jews should automatically be classified as anti-semite, simply because they don't devote specific (for non-jews inordinate?) amounts of time and attention on historical and current issues relating to the jewish faith/nation.

Bruce Haig, Frankfurt am Main,

Why would anything be taught done that would offend the masters of Urabia. The term for ex-citizens of the EU is Dhimmi.. Get used to it. Ladies, you will love Sharia Law.

Desmond Taylor, Houston, TX