Israeli PM lauds softening of Polish Holocaust law

JERUSALEM - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised on Wednesday the softening of a controversial Polish law that banned mentions of Poland's complicity in Nazi crimes.

"Israel welcomes the decision taken by the Polish government," Netanyahu said in televised remarks in Tel Aviv.

His remarks were the first official Israeli comment after Poland's right-wing Law and Justice party unexpectedly agreed to remove a part sanctioning references to Polish guilt in Nazi crimes during the War World II with a jail sentence.

Netanyahu said Israel held talks with Poland's government about the law over the past months.

Israeli and Polish teams, including diplomats and historians, worked together to find a solution for the controversy sparked by the law.

"It's obvious that the Holocaust was an unprecedented crime committed by Nazi Germany against the Jewish nation, including all Poles of Jewish origin," Netanyahu said.

"We've always agreed that the term Polish concentration death camps is blatantly erroneous and diminishes the responsibility of Germany for establishing those camps," he added.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu urged an academic freedom on Holocaust research, adding that both countries understand the importance of conducting such research.