"Pls accept my apology, it will never happen again. We will remain friends," Pres Duterte to the Jewish community @ABSCBNNews pic.twitter.com/NMI5Gsf5qW

— sherrie ann torres (@sherieanntorres) October 4, 2016

MANILA – Israel’s ambassador to the Philippines has accepted the apology of President Rodrigo Duterte for citing Adolf Hitler and the the killing of millions of Jews in a speech on his campaign against illegal drugs.

Duterte drew flak from the Jewish community when he said he would be happy to slaughter 3 million drug pushers just like how Hitler killed the Jews during the Holocaust.

The president later apologized for his remarks and on Tuesday evening visited a synagogue in Makati to again express his remorse.

"He is the President. He said it was never intentional so we accept his apology...from the start we knew his personality already, and we know it is not intentional," Ambassador Effie Ben Matityau told reporters after Duterte’s speech at the Beit Yaacov Synagogue in Makati.

In his speech at the synagogue, Duterte said he never intended to offend the Jewish community.

"It's my character... it's what I am. I am I and you are you. And God created me to be in this way, I suppose. But one day, when I was coming home from Laos. I was a bit tired, we were on the plane. We arrived at 2 o'clock in the morning from the ASEAN Summit, and part of the briefing was really that I was pictured by the media guys, especially those who are against me on the political side, on the other side of the fence, that I was portrayed and pictured as Hitler," he said.

"And so, true to my character, I am one who would never say 'No, I am not that.' I would just ride, so okay, Hitler and I will murder this three million drug addicts. But in doing so, I mentioned the word Jewish, and that was what was terribly wrong, and for that, I apologize," Duterte added.

In a Facebook post, Matityau noted that Duterte “made it clear what was already clear and known that he did not mean disrespect to the Jewish people.”

“He expressed his respect and affinity to the Jewish people and Israel, paying homage to Prime Minister Netanyahu and his desire to strengthen ties with Israel,” he added.

“On the other end, I made it clear that the President’s words speak for themselves and they are genuine coming from his heart. We believe that any reference to Nazi Germany that is not in the context of the most evil empire is not going to achieve anything and will be counterproductive.”

The Philippines and Israel share a special relationship that dates back to World War 2.

President Duterte's wartime predecessor, Manuel Quezon, provided sanctuary to Jews who fled persecution from Nazi Germany.

Quezon welcomed over 1,000 Jews to Manila and Mindanao under his open-door policy in the 1930s.

Years later, under former President Manuel Roxas, the Philippines’ vote would become the tie-breaker in a United Nations vote that separated Israel from Palestine.

Israel reciprocated the Philippines’ gestures by allowing Filipinos to have visa-free access to their country and "respectable" working opportunities in the Holy Land.

The Embassy of Israel in Manila held a year-long campaign called “Thank you, Philippines,” last year to celebrate the two countries' friendship.