Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the international community to take steps against Iran’s nuclear program and "not sit idly by during any attempt to carry out another Holocaust."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the international community Tuesday to take steps against Iran's nuclear program and "not sit idly by during any attempt to carry out another Holocaust."

"This is a day when the world needs to commit not to allow another genocide and to act so that weapons of mass destruction don't reach the hands of Iran's ayatollahs. Only a combination of crippling sanctions and putting all the options on the table can make Iran stop," Netanyahu told the Knesset, which was marking the so-called International Holocaust Remembrance Day.

"We can't stick our heads in the sand. The Iranian regime's emissaries, Hamas and Hezbollah, have already fired thousands of missiles at us, but when there are those who try to belittle or deny those who are warning of the danger, they apparently haven't learned their lesson. The lesson is that the countries of the world must be roused to act against the threat while there is still time."

He noted the “uniqueness” of the genocide committed against the Jews during World War II, but asked whether the establishment of the United Nations had prevented “subsequent genocides”.

"Look what's happening in Syria. Despite progress, technology and the flow of information, the world is not stopping in its tracks over the men, women and children who are being murdered indiscriminately. Against this backdrop, can we say with certainty that the world would not sit idly by in the face of renewed attempts to exterminate our people?"

According to Israeli daily Haartez, Netanyahu cited recent Iranian statements of destroying Israel and said many people have remained silent in the face of those “threats and threats by Hezbollah and Hamas”.