An embarrassing incident happened at Yad Vashem last week during a visit by the Prime Minister of Greece, Antonis Samaras. Like every state leader who visits Israel for the first time, Samaras took a tour there ? and surprised his hosts by refusing to cover his head with a skullcap.
His hosts chose to let it go, but their reservations and humiliation at the act were evident. The Greek Prime Minister?s refusal to wear a skullcap at Yad Vashem was seen as a show of contempt for the honor, or the sanctity, of the place and for the Holocaust in general. Israeli officials responded the same way in 2005 to the absolute refusal of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Only the significance of the relations between Israel and Turkey prevented a scandal then, as well.
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