Israel's ambassador to Ukraine has sharply criticized a move by local legislators to honor a Ukrainian nationalist leader linked to the mass murder of Jews.
Ambassador Joel Lion posted on Facebook over the weekend that he was "shocked" to see that the regional legislature in Lviv, in western Ukraine, has declared 2019 "the year of Stepan Bandera" to mark the 110th anniversary of his birth.
Bandera was a leader of Ukraine's nationalist movement, which included an insurgent army that, for a time, sided with the Nazis during World War II. Jewish groups have linked Bandera's followers to the mass murder of Jews.
"I can't understand how the glorification of those directly involved in horrible anti-Semitic crimes helps fight anti-Semitism and xenophobia," Lion said.
"Ukraine shouldn't forget these crimes committed against Ukrainian Jews and in no way celebrate them through honoring their perpetrators."
