Belgian researchers say they have proof that Nazi leader Adolf Hitler had Jewish and African roots, the British Telegraph reported on Tuesday.

The researchers reached the conclusions after examining saliva samples of 39 of Hitler's relatives.

Journalist Jean-Paul Mulders and historian Marc Vermeeren published their findings in Belgain magazine Knack.

The Sun reported that the two did not directly receive the saliva samples used for their DNA tests from all of Hitler's descendants. In one case, they picked up a napkin dropped by a distant Hitler relative currently living in the United States. Other Hitler relatives were located in Austria and asked to hand over DNA samples.

According to the study, the DNA tests discovered a chromosome called Haplogroup E1b1b1, which is considered rare in Western Europe. The researchers noted that this chromosome is very common in North Africa - mostly in Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria - as well as among Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jews.

According to the report, the study was undertaken under "stringent laboratory conditions."

"One can from this postulate that Hitler was related to people whom he despised," researcher Mulders said