Motorists in Jerusalem stop to observe a moment of silence during Holocaust Remembrance Day April 8, 2013. Photo: Youtube.

An 83-year-old Holocaust survivor has told the Israeli parliament that its treatment of her and her fellow survivors is “a crime and disgrace”.

In an impassioned speech, Dora Roth told the Knesset’s Health and Welfare Committee: “Seeing a Holocaust survivor who can’t afford to heat his home in the winter and can’t afford to buy food or medicine is your disgrace.”

You can see her speech in full here:

[iframe src=”http://player.vimeo.com/video/65602834?color=ad282a” width=”500″ height=”375″ frameborder=”0″ webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen>

Dora Rott – Israeli Holocaust Survivor controversial speech in israeli parliament from Freedom Fighter on Vimeo]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has now met personally with Dora to discuss the issue.

PS: Israel’s oldest charity, Colel Chabad, operates free soup kitchens for elderly Holocaust survivors who come as much for a warm smile and simple human contact as they do for the food itself. I’m running the Windsor Half Marathon to raise funds for Colel Chabad. Find out more here.

Visit Chas’s blog here.