The chinese have become unlikely fans of the Anne Frank story: a London theatre company is to take its production of And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank on a second tour of the country this autumn, only months after its first, sell-out run.

A group of Chinese teachers have begun a tour of Israel as part of a new Holocaust education programme.

The 20 teachers, from Hong Kong, Macau and mainland China, are participating in a seminar to encourage in-depth study of the Holocaust and examine ways in which the subject can be taught.

During the two-week trip they will visit Israel’s Yad Vashem museum and meet historians and Holocaust survivors, as well as tour sites in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

Israeli backpackers have become a familiar sight around Asian destinations like Thailand and India. Now China wants to be part of the lucrative Israeli tourism market.

The Chinese tourism minister, Shao Qiwei, has announced plans to encourage tourism links between the two countries.

Following a meeting with his Israeli counterpart in Shanghai, he described the country as an intriguing holiday spot and said that the two countries will hold a joint tourism conference.