At home, Dr Mahathir Mohamad is often labelled a racist, especially since becoming the patron of Malay right-wing movement Perkasa. Abroad, he is viewed, among others, as being anti-Semitic.

And in his latest blog posting, the former premier takes a swipe at the Jews again, saying they should be judged on their present actions and not be forgiven on account of their tragic past.

“The world is required to sympathise with Jews because of the Holocaust. That is history. The world should judge the Israelis by their actions today,” he said.

Mahathir was commenting on how Israel deals with African immigrants fleeing persecution in their own countries.

Unlike Hitler, he noted that Israel does not incarcerate these immigrants in concentration camps but forces them to live in the poorest sections or ghettoes in Tel Aviv.

"They are not allowed to earn a living. They are actually spat upon by Jews. Israel tries to expel them from Israel. They are offered $3,500 if they agree to be repatriated to their own countries.

"By all accounts these Africans are treated no better than the Jews living in the ghettoes of Europe before World War II," he added.

Mahathir said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu feared the possibility of African blood being mixed with Jewish blood.

"Seems that the Jews believe in racial purity. There is no difference then between the Nazis and the Israelis. Their oppression of the Palestinians is another indicator. Given power, Jews behave in the same way as the Nazis.

"Israel is truly an apartheid state. Only Jews can become Israelis. The Arabs of Israel are second class.

"As for the African immigrants nothing would qualify them to become Israelis, not their adoption of the Hebrew language, nor their culture, nor their loyalty to the state of Israel," he added.