Anti-Zionist image from Bahrain newspaper
Anti-Zionist image from Bahrain newspaperIsrael news photo: Akhbar Al-Khalij

Rumors in Honduras that Israeli soldiers helped engineer the overthrow of President Manuel Zelaya have sounded the alarm bells at the Anti-Defamation League. “We know from history that at times of turmoil and unrest, Jews are a convenient scapegoat," ADL director Abe Foxman said. “That is happening now in Honduras, a country that has only a small Jewish minority."

 

Less than 100 Jewish families live in the country, which has a population of 8 million people.

 

Venezuela has joined several Honduras political analysts to accuse Jews of being in cahoots with de facto President Robert Micheletti. The ADL published translations of excerpts of comments by Honduras politicians and media, such as Radio Globo director David Romero’s remark, "After what I have learned, I ask myself why, why didn't we let Hitler carry out his historic mission?”

 

Romero, whose grandfather was a Jewish immigrant who fled persecution in Czechoslovakia, apologized for his comment.  

Radio Globo also claimed that "officers of the Jewish army" are working in conspiracy with the Armed Forces in Honduras.

 

Venezuela President Hugo Chavez, who has become a close ally of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, previously has charged that Israel was the only country in the world to recognize the Micheletti government. Former President Zelaya has accused “Israeli mercenaries” of trying to assassinate him.

 

Foxman stated, "While we continue to watch events unfolding in Honduras and hope for a prompt and peaceful resolution to the country's crisis, it is imperative for all the parties involved in the negotiations, including outside mediators, to keep anti-Semitism out of the public discourse.”

 

The de facto military arrested Zelaya and flew him to exile in Costa Rico three months ago amid claims by his supporters that Israelis used tear gas to force him out of the Brazilian embassy, where he had taken refuge.

 

Zelaya also told The Miami Herald that "Israeli mercenaries are torturing [him] with high-frequency radiation." However, he told the Associated Press, which sent him a copy of the ADL statements, that he “profoundly respects people who practice other religions.”