Justin Bieber has provoked anger with a message he wrote in the guestbook of the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam.
The 19-year-old pop star paid a visit on Friday to the house where the Holocaust victim and her family went into hiding from the Nazis in 1942. They were discovered after two years and in 1945, at the age of 15, Anne died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.
She became a symbol of the Holocaust after the diary she wrote during her years in hiding were published post-humously, becoming an international bestseller.
The house where she hid was turned into a museum to preserve her memory and educate new generations about the Holocaust.
The Anne Frank House quoted Bieber's guestbook message on their Facebook page.
He reportedly wrote: "Truly inspiring to be able to come here. Anne was a great girl. Hopefully she would have been a belieber."
Bieber made the visit during his European tour, which included a concert in Arnhem, in the Netherlands, on Saturday.
There were angry responses to the comments from other Facebook users.
Kevin Garcia Leon said Bieber was "way too full of himself". "She's an important historical figure so show some respect," he posted.
Facebook user Camille Chatelain wrote: "How does he manage to think about his own fame and success attending a historical place of such tragedy and injustice."
Other users branded the comments "disgusting", "shallow" and "beyond disappointing".
However, the museum was less critical about the star's comments.
In a Facebook update today, the museum wrote: "The Anne Frank House was pleased to welcome Justin Bieber to the Anne Frank House last Friday. We think it is very positive that he took the time and effort to visit our museum.
"He was very interested in the story of Anne Frank and stayed for over an hour. We hope that his visit will inspire his fans to learn more about her life and hopefully read the diary."
