Israeli President: Iran's Leadership Has Turned the Country into a Hub of Anti-Semitism

The President of Israel expressed concern over the rise of anti-Semitism worldwide during a speech at the United Nations on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, stating that "Iran's fanatical leadership" has turned the country into a center of anti-Semitism and hatred. Isaac Herzog, speaking on Monday evening, February 27, said that Iran is openly plotting and acting to destroy Israel, adding: "Iran's fanatical leadership has transformed its country into a hub of anti-Semitism, hatred, and terrorism." The Israeli President also accused Iran of "developing weapons of mass destruction" aimed at eliminating Israel, asserting that the world cannot continue to ignore the global threats posed by Iran, "either directly or through its proxy groups." Hostility between Israel and the Iranian government has intensified in recent years, with both countries engaging in direct attacks against each other this year. Iranian officials have repeatedly denied the occurrence of the Holocaust or labeled related narratives as exaggerations; Ali Khamenei has also used the term "Holocaust myth" several times. January 27, coinciding with the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp at the end of World War II, has been designated by the United Nations as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. In his remarks at the UN, the Israeli President criticized the General Assembly and some affiliated organizations for their lack of a clear stance against the October 7 attacks, calling it a "moral bankruptcy." The 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz was also commemorated on Monday at the camp in Poland, attended by around 50 survivors of Auschwitz and Nazi death camps, who warned about the dangers of rising anti-Semitism. The event, held near the city of Krakow in southern Poland, was attended by several international leaders, including Charles III of the United Kingdom, Olaf Scholz, Chancellor of Germany, Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine, and Emmanuel Macron, President of France. The Auschwitz camp was liberated on January 27, 1945, by Soviet Army soldiers, with only about seven thousand prisoners remaining alive. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany killed more than six million people, most of whom were Jewish. Over one million one hundred thousand of these victims died in the Auschwitz camp.