Extracts
from that Judgment:  April
24, 2000: "I am not at all anti-Semitic. It is not
anti-Semitic to be critical of the Jews."-- British
historian David Irving, after losing a libel suit
he brought against American professor Deborah
Lipstadt for accusing him of 'Holocaust denial' in
a 1993 book.
 Extracts
from that Judgment:  Judge
Gray on Antisemitism:
"I have more sympathy for Irving's argument
that Jews are not immune from his criticism. He
said that he was simply expressing legitimate
criticisms of them. Irving gave as an example what
he claimed was his justified criticism of the Jews
for suppressing his freedom of expression. Another
legitimate ground of criticism might be the manner
in which Jews in certain parts of the world appear
to exploit the Holocaust. I agree that Jews are as
open to criticism as anyone else."
Judge
Gray on racism: "I accept that Irving is not
obsessed with race. He has certainly not condoned
or excused racist violence or thuggery." Judge
Gray on right-wingers: "I accept that when
he has spoken at their meetings, Irving has not
expressed himself in extremist or anti-semitic
terms." Judge
Gray on the gas chambers: "[Irving]
is right to point out that the contemporaneous
documents, such as drawings, plans, correspondence
with contractors and the like, yield little clear
evidence of the existence of gas chambers designed
to kill humans. Such isolated references to the use
of gas as are to be found amongst these documents
can be explained by the need to fumigate clothes so
as to reduce the incidence of diseases such as
typhus. The quantities of Zyklon-B delivered to the
camp may arguably be explained by the need to
fumigate clothes and other objects." More
extracts |
Judge
Gray Speaks Out |
The
Trial Result (First Instance)
Picture: Sir
Charles Gray, QC, the eminent Judge who heard the
historic case of David Irving vs Penguin Books from
January to April 2000.
Judge Gray on David Irving:
"As a military historian, Irving has much to
commend him. For his works of military history
Irving has undertaken thorough and painstaking
research into the archives. He has discovered and
disclosed to historians and others many documents
which, but for his efforts, might have remained
unnoticed for years. It was plain from the way in
which he conducted his case and dealt with a
sustained and penetrating cross-examination that
his knowledge of World War 2 is unparalleled. His
mastery of the detail of the historical documents
is remarkable. He is beyond question able and
intelligent. He was invariably quick to spot the
significance of documents which he had not
previously seen. Moreover he writes his military
history in a clear and vivid style. I accept the
favourable assessment by Professor Watt and Sir
John Keegan of the calibre of Irving's military
history (mentioned in paragraph 3.4 above) and
reject as too sweeping the negative assessment
of Evans (quoted in paragraph 3.5). But the
questions to which this action has given rise do
not relate to the quality of Irving's military
history but rather to the manner in which he has
written about the attitude adopted by Hitler
towards the Jews and in particular his
responsibility for the fate which befell them under
the Nazi regime.
Judge Gray on the scale of
the killing of Jews in the gas chambers: "I
have to confess that, in common I suspect with most
other people, I had supposed that the evidence of
mass extermination of Jews in the gas chambers at
Auschwitz was compelling. I have, however, set
aside this preconception when assessing the
evidence adduced by the parties in these
proceedings.
Judge Gray on David Irving on
the documentary evidence: "Vulnerable though
the individual categories of evidence may be to
criticisms of the kind mentioned in the preceding
paragraphs, it appears to me that the cumulative
effect of the documentary evidence for the
genocidal operation of gas chambers at Auschwitz is
considerable." | 
