Update: U.N. Human Rights Commissioner Louise Arbour responded to ADL's concerns on July 22, but indicated that she would not take action against Jean Ziegler.  ADL issued a statement expressing disappointment in her response.

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New York, NY, July 11, 2005 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has urged the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights to condemn the "outrageous comments" and to request the resignation of Jean Ziegler, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food who recently called the Gaza Strip "an immense concentration camp" and compared Israelis to Nazi guards.

"Once again, Jean Ziegler has brought the name of the United Nations and the Commission for Human Rights into disrepute with his scandalous remarks comparing the situation of the Palestinians with the fate of the Jews under the Nazi regime," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director.  "Sadly, Mr. Ziegler's remarks follow a consistent pattern of abusing his mandate to advance an agenda dedicated to the delegitimization of the State of Israel.  His calls in the past for trade sanctions against Israel, as well as the vastly disproportionate attention he devotes to the Palestinian issue, have dismayed those of us who wish to improve relations between the U.N. and the Jewish community."

In a letter to U.N. Human Rights Commissioner Louise Arbour, ADL called on her to immediately condemn Ziegler's remarks, noting U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan's "significant decision" to personally condemn him. The League added that such action should be "urgently followed by a concerted attempt to secure Mr. Ziegler's resignation."

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.