Olympic Committee On Munich Moment of Silence Refusal: "Muslims Tied Our Hands"

Ankie Spitzer whose husband was murdered by Palestinian terrorists during the 1972 Munich Olympics has been fighting to have a minute of silence at the London Games to remember the eleven murdered victims.

Her efforts have been supported by the governments of much of the western world, but the have been rejected by the International Olympic Committee.

The organisation and its president Jacques Rogge have been subject to intense criticism from across the international community for its continued refusal to honour the 11 Israel Olympians murdered at the 1972 Munich Games with a minute’s silence to mark the 40th anniversary of the killings, in what has been presented as a “humanitarian” gesture.

Munich widow Ankie Spitzer spearheaded the campaign by launching an online protest, which has since garnered support from across political spectrums in several countries including Israel, Canada, the UK, Australia, the US, Belgium and Germany.

In the latest development, some 140 Italian parliamentarians signed a letter to Rogge this week, calling for minute’s silence to be instituted.

Ankie wrote a letter to Olympic officials requesting and an official silence to mark the 40th anniversary of the Munich Massacres, which said in part:

“Silence is a fitting tribute for athletes who lost their lives on the Olympic stage. Silence contains no statements, assumptions or beliefs and requires no understanding of language to interpret.”

Rogge’s succinct response declared that "within the Olympic family, the memory of the victims of the terrible massacre in Munich in 1972 will never fade away."

According to Spitzer, earlier this year when the two met in person Rogge protested his inability to act saying his hands were tied by admission of 46 Arab and Muslim members to the IOC. “No,” Spitzer she responded, “my husband’s hands were tied, not yours.”

In 1972 when the massacre took place, the IOC refused to delay or cancel the games to recognize the murder of the eleven Israeli athletes. Forty years later,  the International Olympic Committee has reconfirmed its message to the world. Jewish blood doesn't matter --we will not do what's right because we are afraid of upsetting anti-Semites in the Muslim world.

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