SWC Calls on Secretary of State Clinton to Rebuke US Ambassador Blaming Muslim Hatred of Jews on Israel

December 3, 2011

The Simon Wiesenthal Center urged Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to "immediately and unequivocally disassociate herself from comments made by U.S. Ambassador Howard Gutman (pictured) who told a Jewish group that, "A distinction should be made between traditional anti-Semitism which should be condemned and Muslim hatred of Jews which stems from the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians."

"The Simon Wiesenthal Center calls on Secretary of State Clinton to immediately rebuke Gutman for excusing Muslim hatred of Jews," said Rabbis Marvin Hier, Dean and Founder and Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean in a statement on behalf of the 400,000 constituent families of the leading Jewish Human Rights NGO.

"America has always taken the lead in condemning hate in all its manifestations, not providing a moral free pass to extremists whose hate of Jews besmirches the Muslim religion and has spawned violent hatred against Jews across the Middle East and beyond."

"Following Gutman's twisted logic, Christian anti-Semites who insist that their hatred of Jews is based on the fact that the Jewish people failed to acknowledge Jesus as Messiah should also be excused until such time as the underlying reason for that hate - the Jewish people's refusal to accept Jesus as messiah is reversed."

"As Ambassador to Belgium, a country where Jews have been attacked by Muslim extremists, Ambassador Gutman's statement is beyond shocking. It will only serve to further embolden hate from Islamist extremists in Europe and beyond. It is critical for Secretary of State Clinton to immediately clarify if Gutman's statement reflects or violates U..S policy vis-à-vis anti-Semitism," Wiesenthal Center officials concluded.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center is one of the largest international Jewish human rights organizations with over 400,000 member families in the United States. It is an NGO at international agencies including the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the OAS, the Council of Europe, and the Latin American Parliament (Parlatino).


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