Amazon comes under fire for selling ‘Auschwitz’ Christmas ornaments

The online retail giant Amazon has been accused of monetising the Holocaust by selling “disrespectful” Auschwitz Christmas ornaments.

Amazon came under fire on Sunday for selling Christmas ornaments and bottle openers decorated with photos of the infamous Auschwitz concentration camp.

Selling "Christmas ornaments" with images of Auschwitz does not seem appropriate. Auschwitz on a bottle opener is rather disturbing and disrespectful. We ask @amazon to remove the items of those suppliers. https://t.co/0uG2JG558e pic.twitter.com/ucZoTWPk1W

— Auschwitz Memorial (@AuschwitzMuseum) December 1, 2019

Poland’s Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum flagged the shocking items in a tweet that called on the online retail giant to stop offering them.

“Selling ‘Christmas ornaments’ with images of Auschwitz does not seem appropriate. Auschwitz on a bottle opener is rather disturbing and disrespectful,” the message said.

“We ask @amazon to remove the items of those suppliers.”

Scores of commenters expressed outrage, with several saying they had contacted Amazon about the Nazi-linked novelties.

“Monetising the monstrosity that was the Holocaust is disgusting and reprehensible,” Twitter user @perrybarber wrote.

“I complained about these items to @amazon customer service, asking that my complaint be forwarded to the appropriate parties, and I’ll be watching to see what action, if any, has been taken.”

I just reported this using the customer service chat in the Amazon app (not the bot; you have to click “still need help,” so you get an actual person). Let’s all do this ASAP, please!! pic.twitter.com/k0oo48DVYw

— Jennifer Blakeslee (@TheseManicGulls) December 1, 2019

The merchandise, first reported by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, appears to have since been removed from the Amazon website.

The Nazis initially built Auschwitz to house Polish political prisoners, who numbered about 150,000, but it was later used to exterminate Jews, with almost 1.1 million deported there by 1944, according to the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum.

Sunday’s controversy erupted little more than a week after the Spanish fashion brand Loewe apologised and withdrew a $A1400 shirt-and-pants outfit amid complaints that its black and white stripes resembled those of worn by concentration-camp prisoners.

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission