Zara under fire for kids' shirt resembling Holocaust uniform

Zara 'sheriff' shirt no longer available. (Amir Mizroch/Twitter)

People are expressing outrage after retail giant Zara began selling a striped kids shirt with a six-pointed gold star on the left side.

The Spanish company said it is supposed to be a sheriff's shirt, but many can't help but notice how the shirt resembles the uniforms worn by Jewish concentration camp prisoners during the Holocaust.

The shirt was available on the retailer’s website in many countries including Israel, but has now been removed from all of the pages. The website where it was displayed now shows other striped shirts, but none with gold stars.

Members of the Israeli press were some of the first to notice the shirt Wednesday.

"The shirt, produced in Turkey, appeared instead to be an ugly, sly swipe at Jewish Holocaust survivors," wrote Hana Levi Julian in The Jewish Press. "Israel has no 'sheriffs'. Moreover the word 'Sheriff' vanishes in letters that are transparent…To survivors of the Holocaust and their relatives and friends in Israel, that message is crystal clear."

Zara responded to complaints via Twitter, trying to explain the long-sleeved pyjama top for toddlers.

"We honestly apologize," the company wrote to numerous people. "It was inspired by the sheriff's stars from the Classic Western films and is no longer in our stores."

Users who mentioned it on Facebook received a similar message from the company.

Previous gaffes

Zara isn't the first clothing company to have issues with offensive attire. Urban Outfitters has a long history of angering the public. They featured a yellow t-shirt with a six-pointed star the same week as Holocaust Remembrance Day in 2012. The company faced online criticism and was slammed by the Anti-defamation League.

Urban Outfitters was sued by the Native American Navajo Nation for its Navajo underwear, which the tribe called "derogatory and scandalous."

The store also came under fire from Irish Americans for selling a shirt with the slogan "Irish I was Drunk."