Posted in: 04/05/2022 – 12:13
On Wednesday, May 4, 2022, the Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed that “Israeli mercenaries” are fighting in Ukraine alongside the Azov Brigade, which Moscow describes as “Nazi”, a day after statements referring to Hitler’s Jewish origin, which sparked a sharp controversy.
“I will say something that Israeli politicians probably do not want to hear, but it may help them. In Ukraine, Israeli mercenaries stand side by side with Azov fighters,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Sputnik radio.
The Ukrainian Azov Brigade was founded in 2014 by far-right activists before it was integrated into the regular forces, and it has proven to be one of the fiercest opponents of the Russian forces that have launched a military attack on Ukraine since February 24.
Its members, along with other Ukrainian fighters, especially refused to lay down their weapons in the besieged port of Mariupol (southeast), where the last defenders of the city are holed up in the Azovstal metallurgical plant, which was attacked by Moscow forces on Tuesday.
A number of Ukrainians see the members of the Azov Brigade as heroes, but Russia considers them “fascists” and “Nazis” who commit atrocities.
By asserting that the Israelis are fighting on the side of Azov, Moscow continues to stir up the controversy that began after Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov spoke on Sunday about Adolf Hitler’s “Jewish blood.”
The statements angered Israel, which it described as “scandalous and unforgivable” and a “horrific historical mistake.”
On Tuesday evening, the Russian Foreign Ministry added fuel to the fire, accusing Israel of “supporting the neo-Nazi regime in Kyiv”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is a Jew.