IAF chief draws Iran-Hitler link

By · December 5, 2007

The commander of the Israeli Air Force urged his top brass to consider Iran’s president a possible modern Hitler.

Maj.-Gen. Eliezer Shkedi recently distributed a letter to senior Air Force commanders in which he noted the similarities between Adolf Hitler’s pre-Holocaust rhetoric and the anti-Israel vitriol of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

“These statements, at this time, are becoming relevant in light of the direct and veiled threats of the Iranian president about the existence of the State of Israel,” read the letter, which was leaked to Yediot Achronot. “The words take on special meaning in light of Iran’s efforts to build its military nuclear capabilities and deliver systems the can reach Israel.

“We must remember and not forget. We must rely only on ourselves,” Shkedi concluded.

Shkedi is the Israeli military officer entrusted with contingency planning for a war with Iran, and his pilots have been training for long-range bombing runs. The Israeli Air Force is also in charge of missile defense systems.

Shkedi’s deputy, Brig.-Gen. Amir Eshel, led an F-15 warplane formation that flew over Auschwitz in 2003, a ceremony designed to underscore Israel’s vow to use military power to prevent a repeat of the Holocaust.