US, France, Germany condemn Mahmoud Abbas' antisemitic comments

Al-Monitor Staff

Sep 7, 2023

Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas speaks during a high-level event to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Nakba at the United Nations headquarters in New York on May 15, 2023. (Photo by Ed JONES / AFP) (Photo by ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images) — Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas speaks during a high-level event to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Nakba at the United Nations headquarters in New York on May 15, 2023. — ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images

WASHINGTON — The chorus of condemnation over Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' comments about Ashkenazi Jews and the Holocaust grew Thursday, with the United States slamming the Palestinian leader's comments as “hateful and antisemitic.”

US Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism Deborah Lipstadt urged Abbas to apologize, tweeting that she was “appalled" while accusing the Palestinian leader of distorting the Holocaust.

I am appalled by President Abbas’ hateful, antisemitic remarks at a recent Fatah meeting. The speech maligned the Jewish people, distorted the Holocaust, and misrepresented the tragic exodus of Jews from Arab countries. I condemn these statements and urge an immediate apology.
— Ambassador Deborah Lipstadt (@StateSEAS) September 7, 2023

In an address to a Fatah meeting last month, Abbas said Adolf Hitler had ordered the killing of Jews because of their "social role.” A translation of his remarks by the Middle East Media Research Institute surfaced this week.