Israel slams top Russian diplomat for suggesting Hitler might have been Jewish: 'Jews did not murder themselves'

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov caused a diplomatic rift with a country that has so far refused to sanction Russia by suggesting that Hitler might have been a Jew.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said in a statement that the lies were intended to accuse the Jews of the worst crimes in history.

Israel summoned Russia's ambassador to Israel for formal admonishment after Yair Lapid, the Israeli Foreign Minister, called the comments "unforgivable" and "the lowest form of racism".

Foreign Minister Lavrov's remarks are both outrageous and unforgivable. The lowest level of racism against Jews is to accuse them of being antisemitic.

Rete 4 channel, an Italian news outlet, interviewed the Russian Foreign Minister over the weekend. He was asked to defend the idea that Russia could defend its war in Ukraine under the banner of "de-Nazifying" the country. The interviewer pointed out that Zelenskyy is Jewish.

When they say "what sort of nazification is this if we are Jews?", I think that Hitler also had Jewish origins, so it means nothing," said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

The claim that Hitler is Jewish is a debunked conspiracy theory that was made in a memoir by Hitler's personal attorney after both men had died. Historians have not found any proof of Hitler's ancestry.

The Ukrainian officials harshly condemned the comments.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov could not hide the deep-rooted antisemitism of the Russian elites. They show that Russia is full of hatred towards other nations.

Israel has taken a cautious approach to the war in Ukraine. The Israeli government has offered rhetorical and humanitarian support to Ukraine, while condemning the invasion of the UN by Russia. Israel refused to give weapons to Kyiv or sanction Russia.

Israel is hesitant to take a hardline stance against Moscow because of its security concerns in Syria, where it coordinates with the Russian military to conduct strikes on Iranian targets.

Since the beginning of the Ukraine war, Bennett has offered to help broker peace talks in Israel, which is a rare example of a country with friendly relations with both Moscow and Kyiv.

One of the few countries with strong ties to Washington that has not joined the West in imposing economic sanctions on Russia is at risk of alienating them.