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Hillel Neuer
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Hillel Neuer
International human rights lawyer, writer & activist
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Abbas compares Holocaust to ‘racism’ suffered by Palestinians

News reports by AFP and others on President Abbas’ condemnation of the Holocaust have omitted or misinterpreted (NYT) his thinly veiled comparisons to Israeli “racism” and “oppression” which the Palestinians “act against.”

The Holocaust, said Abbas, is actually “a reflection of the concept of ethnic discrimination and racism which the Palestinians strongly reject and act against.”

The only one whom Palestinians ever accuse of “racism” — and “act against” — is Israel.

Here is the full text as published by official PLO news agency WAFA, with the Palestinian references bolded by me:

RAMALLAH, April 27, 2014 (WAFA) – In response to a question on the occasion of Holocaust Day, raised in conversation with Rabbi Marc Schneier, President Mahmoud Abbas said that: what happened to the Jews in the Holocaust is the most heinous crime to have occurred against humanity in the modern era. He expressed his sympathy with the families of the victims and many other innocent people who were killed by the Nazis.

 

President Abbas stressed that the Holocaust is a reflection of the concept of ethnic discrimination and racism which the Palestinians strongly reject and act against.

 

‘The world must do its utmost to fight racism and injustice in order to bring justice and equality to oppressed people wherever they are.  The Palestinian people, who suffer from injustice, oppression and denied freedom and peace, are the first to demand to lift the injustice and racism that befell other peoples subjected to such crimes.’

 

‘On the incredibly sad commemoration of Holocaust Day, we call on the Israeli government to seize the current opportunity to conclude a just and comprehensive peace in the region, based on the two states vision, Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security.’

The only person in the world so far who believes that Israel is not the perpetrator of the “racism”, “injustice” and “oppression” referred to above by Abbas is Haaretz columnist Barak Ravid:

Notice how Ravid shifted my original quote marks.

I have refuted Ravid, and challenged him to respond. Still waiting.

About the Author
Hillel Neuer is executive director of UN Watch, a non-governmental human rights organization in Geneva, Switzerland. An international lawyer, Neuer has been described by the Tribune de Genève as a human rights activist who is “feared and dreaded” by the world’s dictatorships. Israel's Ma’ariv newspaper ranked Neuer as one of the “Top 100 Most Influential Jewish People in the World.” Hillel Neuer is a renowned speaker who has published widely, testified before the United Nations and the U.S. Congress, and appeared on CNN, BBC, and Al Jazeera. On September 14, 2016, the City of Chicago adopted a resolution declaring “Hillel Neuer Day” in recognition of his work as “one of the world’s foremost human rights advocates.” In June 2018, McGill University awarded Neuer with an honorary Doctor of Laws degree, citing his work as “an innovator” in “creating global platforms for courageous dissidents and champions of human rights from around the world,” and for being “a passionate advocate for human rights, fighting tirelessly against discrimination, torture, and injustice."