Palestinians paying price for German Nazi-era crimes: PA envoy

Berlin, Oct. 1, IRNA -- A diplomatic representative of the Palestinian Authority (PA) in Germany stressed Palestinians were 'paying the price' for German Nazi-era crimes committed against Jews.

Speaking at a round-table discussion on the Palestinian UN bid in Berlin on Friday evening, PA envoy Salah Abdel Shafi said Germany had not only a responsibility towards Israel but also towards Palestinians who are paying the price for crimes committed in Germany during Nazi rule.

The German government always argues it has a 'special responsibility' towards the security of Israel because of the Nazi mass murder of Jews.

Abdel Shafi rejected this German stance which is a key part of its foreign policy doctrine, saying it was 'not acceptable.'

He cited former German chancellor Helmut Schmidt as saying Germany had a responsibility of making sure the Holocaust would never be repeated but not a responsibility towards a sovereign state.

Germany has in the past faced international criticism for its unconditional support for the Zionist regime.

Berlin played also an active role in torpedoing the Palestinian statehood campaign in the UN.

The German government very rarely criticizes the illegal Jewish state for its controversial policies in the occupied territories and even backed Israel's 2006 murderous war in Lebanon and its 2008/9 military onslaught in Gaza./end