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Last update - 07:20 29/09/2007 Irish museum formally cleared of allegations it had Nazi ties By The Associated Press Tags: Hunt Museum, Ireland  An Irish museum was formally cleared Friday of claims that its founders were Nazi spies who bought art works from dealers trafficking in items stolen from Jews. The report from U.S. expert Lynn Nicholas, published by the Royal Irish Academy following two investigations over three years, called the Simon Wiesenthal Center's allegations "unprofessional in the extreme." Nicholas found no evidence that the late John and Gertrude Hunt - founders of one of Ireland's best-loved museums, the Hunt Museum in Limerick - did anything wrong. She did call for further research of the museum's pieces, most of which are undocumented. Advertisement Nicholas, Washington-based author of The Rape of Europa and other works examining the World War II art world, harshly criticized the Wiesenthal Center, the world's major Nazi-hunting pressure group, for making personally abusive claims based on threadbare evidence. "It is, of course, important to recover and return items unlawfully taken during World War II, but it is equally obligatory, in the pursuit of justice, to protect people and institutions from unproven allegations," Nicholas said. Nicholas said the Wiesenthal Center's primary documentary basis for its allegation was an Irish army intelligence file on Gertrude Hunt, who was German. Such files - kept on more than 500 German nationals during the war - are open to the public in a Dublin archive. She said the center's Paris-based director of international liaison, Shimon Samuels, was irresponsible not to have acknowledged from the start this was his source. Samuels in 2004 claimed - in a public letter to Irish President Mary McAleese and a string of Irish media interviews - that the Hunts were suspected Nazi spies and buyers of Holocaust victims' art. He declined to reveal his source. Nicholas said the file included three letters from April 1944 to November 1946 to the Hunts from Alexander von Frey, a Swiss-based dealer who did purchase Nazi loot. She said the letters show the two parties spoke, but contain no evidence the Hunts purchased a single art work from anybody, much less one with links to the Holocaust. "The fact that dealers once knew and dealt with each other is not sufficient basis for assuming that they shared political ideas or participated in looting," her report said. "It is impossible to understand why the Wiesenthal Center did not reveal its documentation immediately," it said. "The decision to challenge the Irish authorities in a sort of blackmail game was unprofessional in the extreme." Samuels rejected the charge of blackmail, calling it "almost defamatory." He also complained that his organization had been completely excluded from the investigation process, and cast doubt on Nicholas' conclusions. "This does not to me give a clean bill of health to the Hunt Museum," Samuels said of the report after reading The AP's story. "I do not feel the research has been exhaustive or complete, basically due to the fact that we were denied access to the archive and to the entire process." The findings came too late for the Hunts' son and major museum booster, John Jr., who struggled to clear his parents' name but died less than a year after the allegations, aged 47. "This is one of the most tragic elements to this story," said the museum director, Virginia Teehan. She said the Wiesenthal Center's allegations "caused great pain to John. ... It's very regrettable that he didn't live to see this report today." Teehan led an effort in 2005 to display all of the museum's pieces on a Web site and has invited viewers to report any suspicions that they could have been stolen from Jewish families during the war. She said the site has had more than a quarter-million visitors and there's been no query about any item contained in the collection. Teehan said the Wiesenthal Center should apologize. "They have insulted the memory of John and Gertrude Hunt very deeply. One would expect they would be honorable in this regard, she said." Samuels said he would not be issuing an apology and that, as far as he was concerned, "the show is not over." More Jewish World news and features Bookmark to del.icio.us   Personalized workout Boutique gyms is the next big thing - for those who can pay. No to non-violence 'Human chain' against the blockade on gaza yields disappointing turnout.   1.   DO YOU FEEL IT??? 20:53  |  DAVID 28/09/07   2.   Making a silk purse from a sows ear 21:03  |  Natallie Durson 28/09/07   3.   Samuels 21:36  |  Maki 28/09/07   4.   re #2 `Making a silk purse from a sow`s ear` 21:45  |  Colin Wright 28/09/07   5.   Most of the art in the Hunt Museum in Limerick is undocumented 21:57  |  Chick 28/09/07   6.   Nat Logic 22:09  |  Albert Seligman 28/09/07   7.   End the extortion 22:35  |  John bull 28/09/07   8.   Well Colin,Irish President expressed condolences on death of Hitl 22:41  |  Absolute Sweden 28/09/07   9.   2nd Attempt - Undocumented art in the Hunt Museum 22:46  |  Chick 28/09/07   10.   If this is not nipped in the bud 23:00  |  Chris Linthwaite 28/09/07   11.   3rd Attempt - 3rd Attempt - 3rd Attempt- 3rd Attempt 23:20  |  Chick 28/09/07   12.   Apologize to Finkelstein 00:48  |  Paulson 29/09/07   13.   Chris, the Swiss, Austrians and others used the Holocaust to 03:19  |  Steve-NYC 29/09/07   14.   irish museam 07:36  |  Charlie 29/09/07   15.   Ireland was Pro Nazi / Condolences on Hitler`s Death 10:18  |  Semsem 29/09/07   16.   Ireland did not recognise Israel in 1948 10:20  |  Liliane 29/09/07   17.   The Limerick Pogrom 10:22  |  Laila 29/09/07   18.   "Museam Charlie" 10:33  |  Albert Seligman 29/09/07   19.   #15,16,17. 11:58  |  Johnnymac 29/09/07   20.   #15,16,17 12:06  |  Johnnymac 29/09/07   21.   Slight correction for JohnnyMac 13:58  |  Albert Seligman 29/09/07   22.   #12 Paulson: you`r right. Mr. Finkelstein: YOU HAVE EXPOSED TRUTH 16:00  |  nobodysacred 29/09/07   23.   INVESTIGATE SAMUELS` AND WEISENTHAL`S bank accounts investigated 16:06  |  nobodysacred 29/09/07   24.   #18 Albert Seligman 16:30  |  Boycott 29/09/07   25.   #15 Semsem 16:33  |  Boycott 29/09/07   26.   #21 17:51  |  Johnnymac 29/09/07   27.   Bring 300 t gold back to Egypt 18:21  |  Dav 29/09/07   28.   admit the mistake 22:45  |  dave 29/09/07   29.   # 28 Hi Dave 00:07  |  Johnnymac 30/09/07   30.   Ireland did not recognise Israel in 1948 08:10  |  Valerie O`Doherty 26/02/08

Today Online Gaza protest of Israeli siege yields disappointing turnout Responses: 372 Bradley Burston: Palestine's doomsday weapon - non-violence - fails its test Responses: 141 Canadian Jew loses bid to have 'Jerusalem, Israel' in passport Responses: 90 Obama`s top adviser: Israel and Arabs must negotiate own peace Responses: 102 Akiva Eldar: AIPAC does not even bother to rally for two-state solution Responses: 53 Rosner's Domain "Reasonable people can agree or disagree on meeting Ahmadinejad" Clinton allies say: Obama bad for Israel (WTR) Iran Could Have Enough Uranium for a Bomb by Year's End (WTR) Poll: Is it time for Israel to end the blockade in Gaza? McCain, a supporter of Israel with a 'Judeophile' brother More Headlines 08:32 High Court set to rule on petitions against Katsav sex crimes plea bargain 07:55 Iran ordered to pay $33 million to murdered Israeli diplomat's family 08:17 Blast that hurt two IDF officers caused by test of Hezbollah RPG 07:39 ANALYSIS: In the end blood was shed in Sderot, not Gaza 02:13 Report: Widow of slain Hezbollah terrorist blames Syria for killing 06:46 Store manager fined for employing Jewish workers on Shabbat 06:22 Iran UN envoy: Exiled group feeding U.S. lies on weapons plan 07:26 Israeli diplomat postpones meeting after Costa Rica recognizes Palestinian state 03:08 Olmert aides: Demonstration in Gaza 'much ado about nothing' 01:39 Will Obama be supportive of an Israel controlled by a Likud government? 06:06 Australian soccer player to be disciplined for dressing as Hitler Previous Editions Select Day 25 feb 24 feb 22 feb 21 feb 20 feb 19 feb 18 feb 17 feb 15 feb 14 feb 13 feb 12 feb

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