Israel has strongly condemned Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s claim that Adolf Hitler may have been of Jewish descent. It said it was an unforgivable lie that denigrated the Nazi genocide.
Speaking on Italian television, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov was asked why Russia had said that if Ukraine’s own president, Jelensky, was Jewish, he should “denationalize” Ukraine. He replied, “I think Hitler was probably of Jewish descent. We have long heard wise Jewish people say that the greatest anti-Semites are the Jews.”
In a statement, Israeli Prime Minister Naphtali Bennett said, “Such lies are an accusation that the most heinous crimes against the Jews in history were committed by them. The use of the massacre of the Jewish people for political purposes must be stopped immediately.”
The Israeli Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian ambassador and demanded that Russia apologize, citing the deteriorating relations between Russia and Israel.
Leaders of several Western countries condemned the Russian foreign minister’s comments. Speaking on the occasion, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zhelensky accused Russia of forgetting the lessons of World War II. But neither the Russian embassy in Israel nor the Russian government has commented on the matter.
The identity of one of Hitler’s grandfathers is unknown, but there is some speculation that he may have been a Jew, but information that there is no evidence of this is now widely shared.
Israel has expressed support for Ukraine since the start of the Russian offensive in February. But Israel, which has been wary of handling relations with Russia, which wields power in neighboring Syria, initially avoided directly criticizing Russia. Moreover, it has not imposed formal sanctions on Russian oligarchs.