Zionism and Judeo-Islamic Relations in the Middle East: Libya’s Position · 319the product of the new media-savvy generation, while radiating charm
and having mastery over the English language as well as an understand-
ing of the Western mentality and political culture, Saif al-Islam became
an attractive interviewee for the foreign media. Consequently, he was
widely quoted on a range of topics, including relations between Islam
and Judaism and Arab-Israeli coexistence.
One of his most astonishing declarations was his exceptional public
recognition of the Holocaust—the “genocide of the Jews” in his words.
His extraordinary statement, the like of which had never publicly been
uttered by any Libyan official, was made early in 2005 when the world
was marking the sixtieth anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. Seiz-
ing upon the opportunity presented by the World Economic Forum in
Davos and presumably moved by the atmosphere that surrounded the
international community’s efforts at this time to sanctify the memory of
the Holocaust, Saif al-Islam stated that “it is not right to deny the geno-
cide... because it indeed transpired... and if there are Arabs that deny
it, then, in my opinion, this is not right.”^33
However, Saif al-Islam did not repeat this statement in public, pre-
sumably facing strong criticism by various circles in his country’s ruling
echelons, primarily figures from the powerful “Revolutionary Commit-
tees.” These organs, established by Qadhafi in the late 1970s in response
to mounting opposition against his regime, were responsible for prevent-
ing any deviation from its ideological and political “revolutionary” prin-
ciples. This included the deeply rooted rejection of the “Zionist state.”
However, during the early 2000s, the militant Revolutionary Commit-
tees, who have played the role of the regime’s watch dogs for almost
three decades, have become a political burden for Qadhafi due to their
rigid adherence to policies and tactics first designed in the 1970s. They
have tried to block the new spirit of pragmatism that has entered into
Libya’s domestic and foreign affairs, clinging to causes and slogans that
even Qadhafi has relinquished, such as a total commitment to the Arab
world and a public call for the total annihilation of Israel. It was not sur-
prising, therefore, that these Revolutionary Committees have reduced
the breathing space Saif al-Islam needed for opening Libya up to the West
and for promoting domestic reform. It was not long before the Commit-
tees and Saif al-Islam clashed.^34
The representation of the Holocaust has become a major criterion
in the examination of attitudes about Jews in general and about Israel