"The Mass for the 'soul of Ante Pavelic' is a disgrace for Croatian people," Director of the Simon Wiesenthal Center Efraim Zuroff said.

Zuroff asks the Croatian authorities to forbid such events in the future and the religious leaders to cut out the priests "for holding the Mass that is a total ridicule of Christian values."

The Simon Wiesenthal Center is a global Jewish human rights organisation that confronts anti-Semitism, hate and terrorism, promotes human rights and dignity, stands with Israel, defends the safety of Jews worldwide, and teaches the lessons of the Holocaust to future generations.

The manager of the Press office and the PR of the Zagreb archdiocese Zvonko Franc said: "Everybody can ask for the Mass service for the salvation of one's soul." Croatian daily Vjesnik reports.

croatiantimes.com