Every year, Israeli children gather around bonfires on the Jewish holiday of Lag BaOmer and burn the effigies of the enemies of the Jewish people. Perennial favorites in that category include the likes of Adolf Hitler and Saddam Hussein.
Now, a Jewish rightist group wants to add US President Barack Obama to that list.
Bentzi Gupshtain, a member of the outlawed Kahane Chai (Kach) party, said his organization is distributing hundreds of effigies of the US president for children to set fire to on Lag BaOmer May 2nd.
"The Israeli people's enemy is Barack Hussein Obama," Gupshtain told Israel Radio. "He is an anti-Semite and an Islamist. We received many requests from children all over Israel for the effigies and want to teach children to trust in God, not Obama."
During the interview, Gupshtain drew a parallel between Obama and the late Palestinian leaders Yasser Arafat of Fatah and Ahmed Yassin of Hamas, saying they were all enemies of the Jewish State.
The Obama administration recently roused the ire of Israel's Right by insisting that Jewish construction in the West Bank and east Jerusalem be frozen.
Kach is recognized as a terrorist organization by Israel, the US and the European Union.
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