Fidel Castro's statements on Israel called anti-Semitic

U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Broward County is denouncing anti-Israel statements made this week by former Cuban President Fidel Castro, which she calls ``outrageous'' and ``anti-Semitic.''

Castro, who often issues his musings on world affairs through the government-run media, said this week that:

``The hatred felt by the state of Israel against the Palestinians is such that they would not hesitate to send the 1 ½ million men, women and children of that country to the crematoria where millions of Jews of all ages were exterminated by the Nazis,'' Castro said. ``It would seem that the Fuehrer's swastika is today Israel's banner,'' he said, referencing Adolf Hitler

In a prepared statement, Wasserman Schultz, a Democrat from Weston whose district stretches from Broward County to North Miami-Dade, said:

``These outrageous anti-Semitic comments are an insult to the millions of Jews who were systematically killed or tortured by the Nazis,'' Wasserman Schultz said. ``To compare the people who survived Nazi death camps, or their relatives, to Nazis themselves shows an inexcusable level of ignorance and insensitivity to the Jewish people.''

Castro's comments come at a time when the United Nations Human Rights Council is debating Israel's actions last month when it boarded a ship that tried to break the country's naval blockade on Gaza.

Wasserman Shultz said although Castro is no longer officially in power -- his brother Raúl is Cuba's leader -- Fidel Castro's statements are still viewed as island's official stand.

``These aren't just the comments of some doddering anti-Semite who is losing his faculties,'' Wasserman Schultz said. ``These malicious comments were officially distributed by Cuba's government. They should be seen as what they are -- an official position of the Cuban government and endorsement of hateful anti-Semitism.''

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/06/15/1682203/fidel-castros-statements-on-israel.html