BERLIN (AFP)---A German court jailed the lawyer of a convicted Holocaust denier Monday for calling the Nazis’ World War II slaughter of European Jews "the biggest lie in world history."

Judges in the western city of Mannheim sentenced lawyer Sylvia Stolz to three and a half years in prison on charges that include inciting racial hatred, and barred her from practicing law for five years, a court spokeswoman said.

Stolz made the remarks in 2006 while representing "historian" Ernst
Zuendel, who was handed a five-year prison term in Germany last February for repeatedly disputing the Holocaust as a historical fact.

Born in Germany, Ernst Zuendel (L) lived in Canada for decades but fell foul of authorities there for his publishing empire built on anti-Semitic and neo-Nazi works. He was extradited to Germany in 2005.

The 44-year-old also signed a motion during Zuendel’s trial with "Heil
Hitler" and shouted that the lay judges deserved the death penalty for "offering succour to the enemy" -- leading the court to dismiss her.

But Stolz refused to leave Zuendel, with whom she has also been
romantically linked for several years, and had to be forcibly carried out of the courtroom.

She was immediately taken into custody after Monday’s verdict to avert further outbursts.

Born in Germany, Zuendel lived in Canada for decades but fell foul of
authorities there for his publishing empire built on anti-Semitic and neo-Nazi works. He was extradited to Germany in 2005.

The Nazis systematically exterminated six million European Jews during WWII.

It is a crime to deny the Holocaust in several European countries,
including Germany and Austria.