Housing minister Mona Keijzer will not face charges following comments she made on a television programme about the need to strengthen education about the Holocaust for refugees, the public prosecution department said on Friday.

Keijzer made the comments on talk show Sophie & Jeroen in May when asked about the new cabinet’s plans to boost knowledge of the Holocaust. She told the programme the measures were necessary because “the hatred of Jews is almost part of Islamic culture”.

“You see that many asylum migrants come from countries where the religion is Islamic,” she said. “We know that the hatred of Jews is almost part of the culture there.”

Her comments were criticized by others at the table, including Jewish writer Arnon Grunberg, who pointed out that the Holocaust was driven by other Europeans. She also then apologised if people had misunderstood her original comment.

The public prosecution department said on Friday that the public comments were punishable by law but that in this case there would be no action taken because prosecuting a politician for making them would conflict with freedom of speech legislation.

“A politician has a special responsibility to avoid statements that may fuel intolerance and undermine respect for the equality of others,” the public prosecution department said. “As a politician, Keijzer should choose her words carefully and substantiate her statements, including on television.”

The department said it believes that the statements made by Keijzer are in themselves insulting about a group of people because of their race and religion and are unnecessarily hurtful.

At the same time, the department said, prosecution would have a too far-reaching impact on her right to freedom of expression. “Criminal law should be the ultimate resort,” the department said.

In total, 16 people made a police complaint about the comments.