Criticism of former Cuban president Fidel Castro, who compared the Israeli treatment of Palestinians to the Nazi extermination of Jews angered Israel.

Former Cuban President Fidel Castro slammed Israel last Friday and compared its policies to those of Nazi Germany.

He said Israel seems to have taken the swastika as its banner, and that it would not hesitate to send the 1.5 million Palestinians living in Gaza to "crematoriums".

Castro's remarks were issued in an article.

"The hatred felt by the state of Israel against the Palestinians is such that they would not hesitate to send the one and a half million men, women and children of that country to the crematoria where millions of Jews of all ages were exterminated by the Nazis," the ex-Cuban leader said.

"It would seem that the Fuehrer's (Nazi leader Adolf Hitler's) swastika is today Israel's banner," the 83-year-old Castro declared in the latest of a series of articles dubbed "reflections" in the island's media.

"With these outrageous comments, Fidel Castro shames his old-time companions and the ideals he always pretended to serve. Che Guevara must be spinning in his grave," Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said in Jerusalem.

On June 2 the Geneva-based Council condemned as outrageous Israel's attack on a ship flotilla taking aid to blockaded Gaza and the killings of nine Turkish Gaza activists on board one vessel, voting to set up an international independent fact-finding mission into the raid.

However, Israel rejected a U.N. investigation, has set up its own probe over its own attack.

But, Turkey's Foreign Minister dismissed any Israeli probe over deadly Gaza ship attack, saying "The fact that a defendant is both prosecutor and judge, constitutes contradiction to law."

"Israeli threat"

He also addressed the new round of sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council against Iran, and said a confrontation with Israel is inevitable, and that even the UN and US "cannot alter the chain of events".

He said, that Iran is subject to Israeli threats, and will not give in to the inequality it has been dealt amid the decision to impose further sanctions on Tehran.

The outcome, he said, would have been different had a similar resolution been passed against Israel, since the United States would have vetoed the decision.

"But when Iran is accused of enriching uranium to 20%, the US immediately demands economic sanctions against Tehran," he said.

The Security Council approved a fourth round of sanctions against Iran on Wednesday.

UN vote came despite Turkey-Brazil efforts that yielded a nuclear swap deal with Iran.

Israel, most experts estimate that it has at least between 100 and 200 nuclear warheads, often threatens the Islamic republic with an attack.

Israeli jets bombed an Iraqi nuclear reactor in 1981 and a site in Syria in 2007.

Turkish PM called for "fair" stance from global powers before UN vote.

Israel recently refused US and international calls to sign Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and open its facilities for IAEA perusal.

Agencies