Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called the Holocaust the most heinous crime in modern human history , his office said in a statement Sunday . He called the Holocaust an embodiment of racism , in response to a question by Rabbi Marc Schneier on the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day , the statement from the Palestine Liberation Organization said . He said Palestinians reject racism and ethnic discrimination , and he called on the world to fight it . `` The Palestinian people , who suffer from injustice , oppression and denied freedom and peace , are the first to demand to lift the injustice and racism that befell other peoples subjected to such crimes , '' the statement read . The PLO called on Israel to `` conclude a just and comprehensive peace in the region , based on the two states vision . '' Monday is Holocaust Remembrance Day . Ceremonies begin after sundown Sunday . In his 1983 doctoral dissertation , Abbas wrote of `` the Zionist fantasy , the fantastic lie that six million Jews were killed '' and said only 890,000 Jews were killed by Nazis -- and that these were chiefly the victims of a Zionist-Nazi plot , the Jerusalem Post reported Sunday . But in 2011 , he said he did `` not deny the Holocaust '' and that he had `` heard from the Israelis that there were six million '' victims , adding , `` I can accept that , '' The New York Times reported . Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told CNN 's `` State of the Union '' on Sunday that he was struggling to reconcile Abbas ' remarks on the Holocaust with the decision by his Fatah movement last week to seek a unity government with Hamas . Abbas `` ca n't have it both ways , '' by calling the Holocaust the most heinous crime in modern history while embracing Hamas , a `` terrorist organization that denies the Holocaust and openly calls for a new extermination of the six million Jews of Israel , '' Netanyahu said . Netanyahu said Abbas is likely seeking to carry out `` damage control '' with his latest remarks . `` What he 's trying to do is to placate Western public opinion that understands that he delivered a terrible blow to the peace process by embracing these Hamas terrorists , and I think he is trying to wiggle his way out of it . '' A tweet Sunday from Netanyahu 's office said Abbas `` is forging a pact with Holocaust deniers . '' It included a photo of Abbas smiling alongside Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal . Fatah and Hamas announced Wednesday they will begin discussions to form a unity government . An interim government could be finalized in the next five weeks , with elections possible by early 2015 , Fatah spokesman Fayez Abu Eita said . After the reconciliation was announced , Netanyahu 's office said Israel canceled peace negotiations that were scheduled to take place that night . Israel and the Palestinian Authority face an April 29 deadline to agree on a framework for a comprehensive peace treaty , but the sides appear far apart . Netanyahu : No peace talks if Abbas is backed by Hamas .
Netanyahu : Abbas ` ` ca n't have it both ways '' while embracing Hamas . In 1983 , Abbas called the death of one million Jews a ` ` Zionist lie '' and ` ` fantastic . '' Abbas now calls the Holocaust an act of racism , calls on the world to fight injustice . Abbas ' Fatah faction said last week it will form unity government with Hamas .