BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg taken aback after Israeli President brandishes Mein Kampf | World | News

Israel’s President Isaac Herzog claimed that an Arabic translation of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf book was found among the personal belongings of a Hamas terrorist in Gaza.

Speaking to Laura Kuenssberg, President Herzog said that the disclosure was an “exclusive” for the BBC.

He held up the book, saying: “This is the book that led to the Holocaust and the book that led to World War Two.

“This book was found a few days ago in northern Gaza in a children’s living room, which was turned into a military operation base of Hamas.”

Adolf Hitler wrote ‘Mein Kampf’ while in prison in 1923 following an attempted coup in Munich.

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Mr Herzog flicked through the anti-Semitic book, saying that the Hamas terrorist who owned it had annotated its pages, particularly sections focusing on killing Jewish people.

He said: “The terrorist wrote notes, marked the sections, and learned again and again, Adolf Hitler’s ideology to hate the Jews, to kill the Jews, to burn and slaughter Jews wherever they are.

“This is the real war we are facing.”

Mr Herzog pointed to the book and said that those who marched for a ceasefire in Gaza on the streets of London yesterday are “basically supporting this idealogy”.

Hundreds of thousands joined the pro-Palestinian demonstration yesterday, which coincided with Armistice Day and ended up becoming the biggest UK rally since the war between Israel and Hamas began.

Ms Kuenssberg was taken aback by the president’s move as the BBC host pointed out that many of those marching were demanding an end to violence.

When asked if Israel’s response to the attack by Hamas on 7 October has become disproportionate, President Herzog said that “first and foremost we defend ourselves”.

The Hamas-run health ministry says more than 11,000 people have been killed in Gaza – of whom more than 4,500 were children

He acknowledged that there had been civilian deaths in Gaza but blamed Hamas for many of the tragedies there.

Following the BBC interview, the Israeli presidential office said that the civilian home where the Nazi book was uncovered also “included an explosives laboratory, and represented further proof of Hamas’s terrorist activity in the heart of the civilian population in Gaza”.

Last month, President Herzog similarly held up an al Qaeda bomb manual during an interview with Sky News, saying it was found on the body of a Hamas fighter.

However, Sky News was unable to verify the documents and spoke to experts, including William Alberque, director of strategy, technology and arms control at the International Institute of Strategic Services (IISS), who disputed claims that it showed a link between al Qaeda and Hamas.