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ABSTRACT

Johann von Leers, aka Omar Amin (1902-1965), was one of the foremost antisemitic propagandists of the Third Reich. He hated Jews and Judaism, as well as Christianity, which he regarded as a Jewish sect. As a young man, he had reached out to Haj Amin al-Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem. In 1928, he joined the NSDAP, and in 1935, the Allgemeine (general) SS where he received the honorary rank of SS-Sturmbannführer (Major). Like many war criminals of his generation, he was a well-bred and cultured intellectual.

In February 1956, the Government of Egypt engaged Leers to write antisemitic and anti-Zionist propaganda. He thus embodies the postwar continuation of absolute, ideologically pure Nazi doctrine as well as the German traditions of global geopolitics. In Egypt, von Leers achieved access to power and considerable influence.

Our sources are incomplete. Nonetheless, one may achieve a reasonable understanding of Leers' ideas and plans and their intended consequences.

I. THE CAREER OF JOHANN VON LEERS AND THE HISTORICAL PROBLEM

Johann von Leers, aka Omar Amin(l 902-1965), was one of the foremost antisemitic propagandists of the Third Reich. Beyond hating Jews, Judaism, and Christianity, he possessed distinctive geopolitical views. He advocated cooperation between Germany and the Muslim world and, like members of the Junker class and military elite, he viewed Russia as Germany's natural ally. Accordingly, he considered the Nazi invasion of the USSR a blunder. As a young man, Leers wrote propaganda against Zionist settlement in Mandatory Palestine and, even before the Second World War, had reached out to Haj Amin al-Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem. In 1929, he joined the NSDAP. From 1930-1931, Leers was a member of the SA reserves and in 1935 joined the Allgemeine (general) SS where he received the honorary rank of SS-Sturmbannführer (Major).1 In April 1938, he was named full professor at the Friedrich-Schiller University in Jena. His area of expertise was "Legal, Economic, and Political History on a Racial Basis" {Rechts-, Wirtschafts- und politische Geschichte auf rassischer Grundlage). He demonstrated a talent for languages and was proficient in English, French, Spanish, Dutch, Japanese, Hungarian and Arabic.2 In his biographical dictionary, Who's Who in Nazi Germany, the late Professor Robert Wistrich gave the following information on von Leers' career:

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