Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has held his tongue for months in the face of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s serial remarks against Israel, jabbed back Thursday, Feb 28, labeling Erdogan’s characterization of Zionism as a crime against humanity “sinister and mendacious.”

According to The Jerusalem Post, the Prime Minister’s Office issued a statement saying Netanyahu strongly condemned Erdogan’s comments and “comparison of Zionism and fascism.”

Speaking Wednesday before a Vienna forum of the Alliance of Civilizations – a UN framework for West-Islam dialogue – the Turkish prime minister said, “It is necessary that we must consider – just like Zionism, or anti-Semitism, or fascism – Islamophobia as a crime against humanity.”

In his response, Netanyahu said, “This is a sinister and mendacious statement the likes of which we thought had disappeared from the world.”

The White House condemned Erdogan's remarks on Thursday.

"We reject Prime Minister Erdogan's characterization of Zionism as a crime against humanity, which is offensive and wrong," White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said in a statement. "We encourage people of all faiths, cultures, and ideas to denounce hateful actions and to overcome the differences of our times."