Knesset Member's Use of Holocaust Imagery in Referring to Police Behavior is Offensive
Jerusalem, July 26, 2005...The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) is distressed that once again an Israeli political leader has used Holocaust imagery in referring to actions taken by the Israeli government or its law enforcement authorities.
During a Knesset debate on the disengagement plan and how the law enforcement are dealing with demonstrators, MK Zvi Hendel of the National Union Party said that, "Maybe we killed Eichmann for no reason. He too only followed orders."
In response to MK Hendel's remark, ADL's Israel office issued the following statement:
Likening the Israeli National Police to Adolf Eichmann, who translated the idea of the final solution, which caused the death of six million innocent Jews and millions of non-Jews alike into an operative reality, is simply outrageous.
While we call on the IDF and Israeli police to use the utmost sensitivity in dealing with demonstrators and to allow demonstrations to take place in a peaceful and safe manner, as befitting a true democracy, Israeli leaders must take into consideration that evoking Nazi imagery is offensive, demeaning to the victims of the Holocaust and is an unacceptable perversion of history.
The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.
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