Arnie heads to Israel

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, the son of a Nazi, is to visit Israel this weekend on his first foreign trip since taking office and will attend the groundbreaking for a museum dedicated to tolerance.

“He feels it’s critically important to keep his commitment to go to Israel and continue a dialogue about tolerance,” said Terri Carbaugh, a spokeswoman for the governor.

Schwarzenegger agreed more than a year ago to attend the groundbreaking for the Centre for Human Dignity-Museum of Tolerance in Jerusalem.

The museum is a project of the Los Angeles-based Simon Wiesenthal Centre.

Schwarzenegger, who has described Nazi atrocities as the darkest chapter in Jewish history, will be in Israel for about 24 hours to attend the ceremony - and scout for business opportunities for California’s ailing economy.

The governor also plans to meet Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. No talks were scheduled with Palestinian officials, the governor’s office said.

In a speech earlier this month, Schwarzenegger called the visit “an extraordinary moment for me”.

During last year’s recall campaign, Schwarzenegger was shadowed by allegations that in the 1970s he spoke admiringly of Adolf Hitler’s ascent and the German leader’s ability to rouse a crowd with his speaking.

Schwarzenegger said he did not recall the statements and that he despised “everything that Hitler stood for”.

He has a long-standing relationship with the Wiesenthal centre, one of the largest international Jewish human rights organisations, and has given the group more than €748,200.

His father, a police officer, was a member of the Nazi Party, but Schwarzenegger has always sought to distance himself from that part of his Austrian background.