Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made another attempt to distance himself from his recent gaffe in which he suggested that the Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin al-Husseini, persuaded Adolf Hitler to exterminate Europe’s Jews.
In a post on his official Facebook page uploaded on Friday, Mr Netanyahu said that he wished to “clarify” the mufti’s relationship with the Nazis.
Elaborating on a statement he made immediately after coming under fire for his initial gaffe, the PM wrote: “Hitler and the Nazi leadership are responsible for the murder of six million Jews.
“The decision to move from a policy of deporting Jews to the Final Solution was made by the Nazis and was not dependent on outside influence.
“The Nazis saw in the Mufti a collaborator, but they did not need him to decide on the systematic destruction of European Jewry, which began in June 1941.”
Netanyahu added: “My remarks were intended to illustrate the murderous approach of the Mufti to the Jews in his lengthy contacts with the Nazi leadership. Contrary to the impression that was created, I did not mean to claim that in his conversation with Hitler in November 1941 the Mufti convinced him to adopt the Final Solution. The Nazis decided on that by themselves.”
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