</s>MANILA — Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte appeared to liken himself to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler on Friday and said he would “be happy” to exterminate 3 million drug users and peddlers in the country.

Although the administration of President Barack Obama played down the remark, Duterte’s comments triggered shock and anger among Jewish groups in the United States, which could create pressure on the U.S. government to take a tougher line with the Philippines leader.

State Department spokesman Mark Toner on Friday said Duterte’s comments, in a rambling speech on his arrival in Davao City after a visit to Vietnam, were “a significant departure” from America’s partnership with the Philippines “and we find them troubling.”

Duterte told reporters that he had been “portrayed to be a cousin of Hitler” by critics.

Noting that Hitler had murdered millions of Jews, Duterte said, “There are 3 million drug addicts (in the Philippines). I’d be happy to slaughter them.

“If Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have …,” he said, pausing and pointing to himself.

“You know my victims. I would like (them) to be all criminals to finish the problem of my country and save the next generation from perdition.”

U.N. special adviser on the prevention of genocide, Adama Dieng, expressed alarm at Duterte’s comments and urged the Philippines leader to exercise restraint in his use of language, a U.N. statement said.

Dieng also called on Duterte to support an investigation into the reported rise in killings resulting from his anti-drug campaign, the statement said.

In August, Duterte threatened to withdraw the Philippines from the United Nations after it called for an end to the killings.

In Washington, a State Department spokeswoman, Anna Richey-Allen, had repeated concerns about reports of extrajudicial killings in the southeast Asian country but offered no response to Duterte’s comment referring to Hitler.

A White House official on Friday stuck to a strategy of stressing Washington’s long-standing ties with Manila, saying, “We continue to focus on our broad relationship with the Philippines and will work together in the many areas of mutual interest.”

How relations between the U.S. and the Philippines evolve will depend more on what Duterte does than on what he says, administration officials have said.

In Hawaii on Friday, Defense Secretary Ash Carter met with the defense chiefs of southeast Asian nations, including the Philippines, and U.S. officials said they would use the forum to clarify comments by Duterte that throw into doubt his commitment to military ties with the United States, including joint exercises and patrols.

Carter, speaking before Duterte’s remarks in Davao, said Washington had an “ironclad” alliance with Manila.

Since Duterte took office on June 30, more than 3,100 people have been killed since then, mostly alleged drug users and dealers, in police operations and vigilante killings.

Duterte, who was elected in May on the back of a vow to end drugs and corruption in the country of 100 million people, has insulted Obama and in a number of remarks he has undermined the relationship between Manila and Washington.

On Friday, reacting to critical comments on his war on drugs by U.S. Sens. Patrick Leahy and Benjamin Cardin, Duterte said, “Do not pretend to be the moral conscience of the world. Do not be the policeman because you do not have the eligibility to do that in my country.”

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, head of the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s Digital Terrorism and Hate project, called them “outrageous.”

“Duterte owes the victims (of the Holocaust) an apology for his disgusting rhetoric,” Cooper said.

The Anti-Defamation League, an international Jewish group based in the United States, said Duterte’s comments were “shocking for their tone-deafness.”

“The comparison of drug users and dealers to Holocaust victims is inappropriate and deeply offensive,” said Todd Gutnick, the group’s director of communications. “It is baffling why any leader would want to model himself after such a monster.”

Duterte has said there will be no annual war games between the Philippines and the United States until the end of his six-year term, and his hostility may make Washington’s strategy of rebalancing its military focus toward Asia in the face of an increasingly assertive China more difficult to achieve.

Murray Hiebert, a Southeast Asia expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank in Washington, said Obama was “taking the long view” in dealing with Duterte. Obama leaves office in January.

Malcolm Cook, a senior fellow at Singapore’s ISEAS Yusof Ishak Institute, said the U.S-Philippines alliance was not necessarily at risk, but Washington could seek to focus on ties elsewhere in the region.

“We are all in some sense becoming, by necessity, desensitized to Duterte’s language,” he said.

“Diplomatically, the U.S. would say they’ll continue to work with him and the alliance is strong. But it’s whether they’ll continue to strengthen that alliance or not.”</s>MANILA: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte does not want to be branded another Hitler but he is willing to kill three million people in his crime war, his spokesman said Saturday.

Duterte has faced international condemnation after on Friday likening his anti-drugs crackdown, which has left more than 3,000 dead, to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler’s efforts to exterminate Jews.

“We do not wish to diminish the profound loss of six million Jews in the Holocaust,” presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella said in a statement.

“The president’s reference to the slaughter was an oblique deflection of the way he has been pictured as a mass murderer, a Hitler, a label he rejects.”

Nevertheless, Abella confirmed Duterte had intended to say he wanted to kill millions of people in the Philippines to achieve his mission of eradicating illegal drugs.

“Duterte was referencing to his ‘willingness to kill’ three million criminal drug dealers – to save the future of the next generation and the country,” Abella said.

On Friday Duterte raised the example of Hitler’s genocidal campaign to eliminate Jews, while discussing his anti-drugs crackdown.

“There are three million drug addicts (in the Philippines). I’d be happy to slaughter them,” Duterte said.

“At least if Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have,” he said, then paused. “But you know, my victims, I would like to be (sic) all criminals to finish the problem of my country and save the next generation from perdition.”

Senior US officials, a UN rights envoy, the German government and Jewish groups quickly condemned Duterte’s comments.

The United Nations special adviser on the prevention of genocide, Adama Dieng, warned Duterte may be in danger of committing crimes against humanity.

Dieng called on Duterte to “exercise restraint in the use of language that could ‘exacerbate discrimination, hostility and violence and encourage the commission of criminal acts which, if widespread or systematic, could amount to crimes against humanity'”, a UN statement said.

Duterte, 71, won elections in May in a landslide after a campaign dominated by his pledge to eradicate drugs in society by killing tens of thousands of people.

He has said the Philippines is in danger of becoming a narco state.

Since Duterte came to power on June 30, police have killed more than 1,200 people and about 1,800 others have died in unexplained circumstances, according to official figures.

Before his Hitler comments, Duterte had faced a barrage of criticism from Western governments and rights groups over the apparent extrajudicial killings.

Duterte has reacted defiantly and often with abusive language to the criticism, while insisting he is not doing anything illegal.

Duterte has branded US President Barack Obama a “son of a whore”, called UN chief Ban Ki-moon a “fool” and said “f*** you” to the European Union while raising his middle finger. – AFP</s>MANILA - Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte appeared to liken himself to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler on Friday and said he would "be happy" to exterminate three million drug users and peddlers in the country.

His comments triggered shock and anger among Jewish groups in the United States, which will add to pressure on the U.S. government to take a tougher line with the Philippines leader. Duterte recently insulted President Barack Obama and in a series of remarks he has undermined the previously close relationship between Manila and Washington.

In a rambling speech on his arrival in Davao City after a visit to Vietnam, Duterte told reporters that he had been "portrayed to be a cousin of Hitler" by critics.

Noting that Hitler had murdered millions of Jews, Duterte said: "There are three million drug addicts (in the Philippines). I'd be happy to slaughter them.

"If Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have...," he said, pausing and pointing to himself.

"You know my victims. I would like (them) to be all criminals to finish the problem of my country and save the next generation from perdition."

Duterte was voted to power in a May election on the back of a vow to end drugs and corruption in the country of 100 million people. He took office on June 30 and over 3,100 people have been killed since then, mostly alleged drug users and dealers, in police operations and in vigilante killings.

His comments were quickly condemned by Jewish groups.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, head of the Simon Wiesenthal Center's Digital Terrorism and Hate project, called them "outrageous".

"Duterte owes the victims (of the Holocaust) an apology for his disgusting rhetoric."

The Anti-Defamation League, an international Jewish group based in the United States, said Duterte's comments were "shocking for their tone-deafness".

"The comparison of drug users and dealers to Holocaust victims is inappropriate and deeply offensive," said Todd Gutnick, the group's director of communications. "It is baffling why any leader would want to model himself after such a monster."

Two days before the Philippines election, outgoing President Benigno Aquino had warned that Duterte's rising popularity was akin to that of Hitler in the 1920s and 1930s.

"I hope we learn the lessons of history," Aquino said in widely reported remarks. "We should remember how Hitler came to power."

Duterte has been scathing about criticism of his anti-drugs campaign and has insulted the United Nations and the European Union, as well as Obama, at various times in recent weeks.

On Friday, reacting to critical comments on his war on drugs by U.S. Senators Patrick Leahy and Benjamin Cardin, Duterte said: "Do not pretend to be the moral conscience of the world. Do not be the policeman because you do not have the eligibility to do that in my country."

He also reiterated there will be no annual war games between the Philippines and the United States until the end of his six-year term, placing the longstanding alliance under a cloud of doubt. It also may make Washington's strategy of rebalancing its military focus towards Asia in the face of an increasingly assertive China much more difficult to achieve.

Still, U.S. Defence Secretary Ash Carter, speaking before the latest remarks from Duterte, said Washington had an "ironclad" alliance with Manila.

A senior U.S. defense official, also speaking earlier, told reporters that the United States had a long enduring relationship with the Philippines regardless of who was president.

"It's going to continue to survive based on what we think are strong U.S.-Philippines common security interests, so we’ll be engaging President Duterte further," the official said.

Malcolm Cook, a senior fellow at Singapore's ISEAS Yusof Ishak Institute, said the U.S-Philippines alliance was not necessarily at risk, but Washington could seek to focus on ties elsewhere in the region.

"We are all in some sense becoming, by necessity, desensitized to Duterte's language," he said.

"Diplomatically, the U.S. would say they'll continue to work with him and the alliance is strong. But it's whether they'll continue to strengthen that alliance or not."</s>Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte appeared to liken himself to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler on Friday and said he would ‘be happy’ to exterminate three million drug users and peddlers in the country.

 In a rambling speech on his arrival in Davao City after a visit to Vietnam, Duterte told reporters that he had been ‘portrayed to be some cousin of Hitler’ by critics.

 Noting that Hitler had murdered millions of Jews, Duterte said: ‘There are three million drug addicts (in the Philippines). I’d be happy to slaughter them.’

 ‘If Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have…,” he said, pausing and pointing to himself.

 ‘You know my victims. I would like (them) to be all criminals to finish the problem of my country and save the next generation from perdition.’

 Duterte was voted to power in a May election on the back of a vow to end drugs and corruption in the country of 100 million people. He took office on June 30 and over 3,100 people have been killed since then, mostly drug users and peddlers, in police operations and in vigilante killings.</s>MANILA (Reuters) - Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte appeared to liken himself to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler on Friday and said he would "be happy" to exterminate three million drug users and peddlers in the country.

His comments triggered shock and anger among Jewish groups in the United States, which could add to pressure on the U.S. government to take a tougher line with the Philippines leader.

Duterte recently insulted President Barack Obama and in a number of remarks he has undermined the previously close relationship between Manila and Washington.

In a rambling speech on his arrival in Davao City after a visit to Vietnam, Duterte told reporters that he had been "portrayed to be a cousin of Hitler" by critics.

Noting that Hitler had murdered millions of Jews, Duterte said, "There are three million drug addicts (in the Philippines). I'd be happy to slaughter them.

"If Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have ...," he said, pausing and pointing to himself.

"You know my victims. I would like (them) to be all criminals to finish the problem of my country and save the next generation from perdition."

Duterte was voted to power in a May election on the back of a vow to end drugs and corruption in the country of 100 million people. He took office on June 30 and over 3,100 people have been killed since then, mostly alleged drug users and dealers, in police operations and vigilante killings.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, head of the Simon Wiesenthal Center's Digital Terrorism and Hate project, called them "outrageous".

"Duterte owes the victims (of the Holocaust) an apology for his disgusting rhetoric," Cooper said.

The Anti-Defamation League, an international Jewish group based in the United States, said Duterte's comments were "shocking for their tone-deafness".

"The comparison of drug users and dealers to Holocaust victims is inappropriate and deeply offensive," said Todd Gutnick, the group's director of communications. "It is baffling why any leader would want to model himself after such a monster."

United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Friday that any use of "the Holocaust and the suffering of the Holocaust in comparison to anything else, frankly, is inappropriate and needs to be rejected."

He said Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had made clear that the fight against illegal drugs must be done "in accordance with human rights standards, with international law, with a focus on the users and rehabilitation."

While the Obama administration has criticized Duterte over the extra-judicial killings, U.S. officials offered no immediate condemnation of his latest comments and instead stuck to a strategy of stressing long-standing ties with Manila.

"We continue to focus on our broad relationship with the Philippines and will work together in the many areas of mutual interest," a White House official said when asked about Duterte's Hitler comments.

Two days before the Philippines election, outgoing President Benigno Aquino had warned that Duterte's rising popularity was akin to that of Hitler in the 1920s and 1930s.

"I hope we learn the lessons of history," Aquino said in widely reported remarks. "We should remember how Hitler came to power."

Duterte has been scathing about criticism of his anti-drugs campaign and has insulted the United Nations and the European Union, as well as Obama, at various times in recent weeks.

On Friday, reacting to critical comments on his war on drugs by U.S. Senators Patrick Leahy and Benjamin Cardin, Duterte said: "Do not pretend to be the moral conscience of the world. Do not be the policeman because you do not have the eligibility to do that in my country."

He also reiterated there will be no annual war games between the Philippines and the United States until the end of his six-year term, placing the longstanding alliance under a cloud of doubt. It also may make Washington's strategy of rebalancing its military focus towards Asia in the face of an increasingly assertive China much more difficult to achieve.

Still, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter, speaking before the latest remarks from Duterte, said Washington had an "ironclad" alliance with Manila.

A senior U.S. defense official, also speaking earlier, told reporters that the United States had a long enduring relationship with the Philippines regardless of who was president.

Another U.S. defense official pointed to participation by the USS Germantown in an amphibious exercise with the Philippines military on Friday as a sign that military ties remained unaffected by Duterte’s latest comments.

Malcolm Cook, a senior fellow at Singapore's ISEAS Yusof Ishak Institute, said the U.S-Philippines alliance was not necessarily at risk, but Washington could seek to focus on ties elsewhere in the region.

"We are all in some sense becoming, by necessity, desensitized to Duterte's language," he said.

"Diplomatically, the U.S. would say they'll continue to work with him and the alliance is strong. But it's whether they'll continue to strengthen that alliance or not."</s>Video: Philippines' president invokes Hitler, says 'happy' to slaughter millions of drug users

Rodrigo Duterte appears to liken himself to Adolf Hitler, saying that he would kill three million drug addicts in the Philippines similar to the Holocaust</s>Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte raised the rhetoric over his bloody anti-crime war to a new level Friday, comparing it to Hitler and the Holocaust and saying he would be “happy to slaughter” 3 million addicts.

Duterte issued his latest threat against drug dealers and users early Friday on returning to his hometown in southern Davao city after visiting Vietnam, where he discussed his anti-drug campaign with Vietnamese leaders and ways for their governments to fight transnational crimes, including illegal drugs.

Duterte has said his public death threats against drug suspects are designed to scare them to stop selling drugs and to discourage would-be users. But his latest remarks took that crime-busting approach to a different level.

He said he had been “portrayed or pictured to be a cousin of Hitler,” without elaborating.

Moments later he said, “Hitler massacred 3 million Jews ... there’s 3 million drug addicts. There are. I’d be happy to slaughter them.”

He was referring to a Philippine government estimate of the number of drug addicts in the country. Historians say 6 million Jews were killed by the Nazis under Hitler before and during World War II.

During the presidential election campaign earlier this year and during the three months he has held office, the tough-talking Duterte has threatened to drown drug suspects to fatten the fish in Manila Bay. He also threatened to execute drug traffickers by hanging – because he didn’t want to waste electricity on them – until their heads were severed from their bodies.

While Hitler’s victims were innocent people, Duterte said his targets are “all criminals” and that getting rid of them would “finish the (drug) problem of my country and save the next generation from perdition.”

Germany’s government slammed Duterte’s comments as unacceptable, and called in the Philippine ambassador to the Foreign Ministry over the matter.

“It is impossible to make any comparison to the unique atrocities of the Shoah and Holocaust,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Schaefer in Berlin.

World Jewish Congress President Ronald Lauder said Duterte’s remarks were “revolting” and demanded that he retract them and apologize.

“Drug abuse is a serious issue. But what President Duterte said is not only profoundly inhumane, but it demonstrates an appalling disrespect for human life that is truly heartbreaking for the democratically elected leader of a great country,” Lauder said in a statement issued from Jerusalem, where he was attending the funeral of former Israeli leader Shimon Peres.

Philippine Rep. Teodoro Baguilat wondered if the president was suggesting that “it’s open season now for all addicts, no more rehabilitation, just kill them systematically like what the Nazis did with the Jews.” He expressed fears that Jewish businesspeople might boycott the Philippines.

Also critical was Phil Robertson, Asia deputy director for Human Rights Watch, who said it was baffling why anyone would want to compare themselves to “one of the largest mass murderers in human history.”

Robertson said that in today’s context, Hitler would be accused of crimes against humanity.

“Is that what Duterte wants? Does he want to be sent to the international criminal court? Because he’s working his way there,” Robertson said.

Amnesty International said Duterte “has sunk to new depths” and urged governments around the world to condemn his “extremely dangerous outburst.”

A spokesman for Yad Vashem, the Jerusalem-based world centre for Holocaust research and commemoration, declined to comment on Duterte’s remarks.

Duterte’s campaign promise to end corruption and crime, especially illegal drugs, within six months of taking office on June 30 carried him to an overwhelming victory in May’s presidential election.

Since the vote, more than 3,000 suspected drug dealers and users have been killed and nearly 700,000 others have surrendered in his crackdown. Duterte has asked for a six-month extension to finish the job.

His supporters and many Filipinos exasperated with widespread crime have welcomed his tough approach, but a growing number of critics, including U.N. officials, the European Union and the United States, have voiced concerns over the widespread killings and human rights violations.

He reacted Friday by calling critics from the European Union a “group of idiots in the purest form.”

Duterte lashed out at the U.S., his country’s longtime treaty ally, and the E.U. for finding fault with his methods, saying European countries were hypocrites for not doing enough to help the large numbers of refugees fleeing from the violence in the Middle East.

“There are migrants escaping from the Middle East. You allow them to rot and then you’re worried about the deaths of about 1,000, 2,000, 3,000 (people in the Philippines),” he said.</s>Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte has raised the rhetoric over his bloody anti-crime war to a new level, comparing it to Adolf Hitler and the Holocaust and saying he would be “happy to slaughter” three million addicts.

He issued his latest threat against drug dealers and users early on Friday after returning to his home town in southern Davao city after visiting Vietnam, where he discussed his anti-drugs campaign with Vietnamese leaders and ways for their governments to fight transnational crimes, including illegal substances.

Mr Duterte has said his public death threats against drug suspects are designed to scare them into stopping selling drugs and to discourage would-be users. But his latest remarks took that crime-busting approach to a different level.

“Hitler massacred three million Jews ... there’s three million drug addicts. There are. I’d be happy to slaughter them,” he said, referring to a Philippines government estimate of the number of drug addicts in the country.

Historians say six million Jews were killed by the Nazis under Hitler before and during the second World War.

During the presidential election campaign earlier this year and in the three months he has been in office, the tough-talking Mr Duterte has threatened to drown drug suspects to fatten the fish in Manila Bay.

He also threatened to execute drug traffickers by hanging - because he did not want to waste electricity on them - until their heads were severed from their bodies.

While Hitler’s victims were innocent people, Mr Duterte said his targets are “all criminals” and that getting rid of them would “finish the (drug) problem of my country and save the next generation from perdition”.

His campaign promise to end corruption and crimes, especially illegal drugs, within six months of taking office on June 30th carried him to an overwhelming victory in the presidential election.

And since he won the election in May, more than 3,000 suspected drug dealers and users have been killed and nearly 700,000 others have surrendered in his crackdown, but he has asked for a six-month extension to finish the job.

His supporters and many Filipinos exasperated with widespread crime have welcomed his tough approach, but a growing number of critics, including UN officials, the European Union and the United States, have voiced concerns over the widespread killings and human rights violations.

He reacted on Friday by calling critics from the European Union a “group of idiots in the purest form”.

He lashed out at the US, his country’s longtime treaty ally, and the EU for finding fault with his methods, saying European countries were hypocrites for not doing enough to help the large numbers of refugees fleeing from the violence in the Middle East.

“There are migrants escaping from the Middle East. You allow them to rot and then you’re worried about the deaths of about 1,000, 2,000, 3,000 (people in the Philippines).”</s>JERUSALEM — Israel’s Foreign Ministry says it’s “unfortunate” that President Rodrigo Duterte chose to invoke Adolf Hitler and the Holocaust in his bloody anti-crime war.

Spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon says Saturday Israel is convinced that President Duterte “will find a way to clarify his words.”

On Friday, the outspoken Duterte said “Hitler massacred 3 million Jews … there’s 3 million drug addicts. There are. I’d be happy to slaughter them.”

Duterte, under fire for extra-judicial killings in the drug war, was referring to the estimated number of drug addicts in the country. The U.S. has warned the president’s violent rhetoric could affect aid.

The Nazis and their allies killed 6 million Jews during World War II as part of a campaign to obliterate European Jewry.
President Rodrigo Duterte likens himself to Adolf Hitler saying he would "be happy" to kill 3 million drug users and dealers in the country. United Nations adviser Adama Dieng cautions Duterte that his use of language could lead to "crimes against humanity".