Venezuela's UN Ambassador Rafael Ramirez. (AP/Bebeto Matthews) (AP/Bebeto Matthews)
Venezuela's UN Ambassador Rafael Ramirez

Venezuela’s Ambassador to the United Nations (UN), Rafael Ramirez, made anti-Semitic remarks in a speech he gave on Friday at an informal meeting of the United Nations’  Security Council (UNSC) on ‘protection’ for the Palestinian people.

“What does Israel plan do to with the Palestinians? Will they disappear? Does Israel seek to wage a final solution? The sort of solution that was perpetrated against the Jews?”

Ramirez was relating to the Nazis’ Final Solution, their plan to annihilate the Jewish People, a plan they were partially successful in implementing during the Holocaust. Ramirez made his outrageous remarks only a day after Israel marked its annual Holocaust Remembrance Day, commemorating the six millions Jewish victims of the Nazi Holocaust.

The session was chaired by Egypt, Malaysia, Senegal and Venezuela. Israel did not attend. The United States and Britain sent lower level representatives.

Israel’s envoy to the UN Danny Danon strongly condemned the Venezuelan ambassador’s remarks saying, “This statement by the Venezuelan Ambassador is clear Anti-Semitism against the Jewish state.  His remarks are a direct continuations to the Palestinian representative’s statement a few days ago comparing Israel to the Nazis,” Ambassador Danon said.

“The Palestinians are bringing anti-Semitism into the halls of the UN and are legitimizing racists and crass language in the parliament of nations,” he charged.

Last week, Palestinian representative to the UN Riyad Mansour compared Israeli military actions to the suppression of the Warsaw uprising by the Nazis during World War Two.

Ambassador Danon and the Israeli Mission immediately worked with members of the Security Council and UN officials to ensure that the Venezuelan’s remarks would be quickly condemned.

The United States, United Kingdom and France unequivocally condemned the Venezuelan Ambassador, who then offered a partial apology to the “Jewish people if they were offended by the remarks.”

By: Max Gelber, United with Israel