Benjamin Netanyahu, current Israel PM, said this today (quoting from Haaretz, an Israeli paper):
"In a speech before the World Zionist Congress in Jerusalem, Netanyahu described a meeting between Husseini and Hitler in November, 1941: "Hitler didn't want to exterminate the Jews at the time, he wanted to expel the Jew. And Haj Amin al-Husseini went to Hitler and said, 'If you expel them, they'll all come here (to Palestine).' According to Netanyahu, Hitler then asked: "What should I do with them?" and the mufti replied: "Burn them.""
The article goes on to cite two historians, Barry Rubin and Wolfgang G. Schwanitz, who make a related but different claim: " even these two researchers do not claim that the dialogue described by Netanyahu ever took place. They say Hitler reached the conclusion to exterminate the Jews because of his desire to nurture Husseini, who opposed the transfer of Jews to pre-state Israel."
So what was the relationship between Hitler and Husseini actually? How much of a leadership role or influential role did Husseini play in the Nazis plans, vs. just being an anti-Semite who supported them? And why do some draw a straight line between the Mufti's beliefs and the PLO's political stances post-Israeli independence? (Let's say PLO up to Oslo Accords, to respect the 20 year rule.)
That's not what Netanyahu actually said. Yes, Netanyahu quotes the Mufti's statement. However, he never attributes the actual decision to the Mufti, though others have picked up an implication. But that implication is a constructed one, and only Netanyahu knows what he meant. It's perfectly possible he was referring to this as an example of incitement that helped make the decision for Hitler.
So what was the relationship between Hitler and Husseini actually?
Hitler and Husseini certainly had a cordial relationship, having met in the past (most famous photo). They were not close by any means of the word, to my knowledge, but Husseini certainly volunteered to assist the Nazi cause in whatever way he could. The primary way he did this was attempting to spread propaganda over radio broadcasts. By this time, however, the Arab people were not following the Mufti nearly as much as before. He was not integral to their plans, and had little effect on the ground in the territory.
As for the "straight line", it's down to similarity of statements. If you'd like examples, I'm happy to share. But it's also a convenient political play.
