Roseanne slams 'Nazi' Israel

Roseanne Barr has described Israel as "a Nazi state" for its conflict with Palestine.

The comedian, who is Jewish, has used her radio show and blog to criticise the country's decision to attack the Gaza strip.

"Israel is a Nazi state. The Jewish Soul is being tortured in Israel. The destruction of the Jews in Israel has been assured with this inhuman attack on civilians in Gaza," she wrote on her website.

However, the former sitcom actress has since retracted her remarks and claimed to be pro-Israel.

"I am going to shut up now. Forever, perhaps. I cannot take the hatred that I feel from people, I cannot bear the weight of it, but yet I could not bear the weight of my own silence. I renounce all vows to anything but the most high creator," she wrote.