Colombian President Gustavo Petro made it very clear on his social media platform “X” that Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva had “spoken the truth” when he mentioned that there is a “genocide” in Gaza, and thereby deserves his “complete solidarity.” In this most recent statement to 7.5 million followers regarding the Israel-Hamas war, Petro underscored that “thousands of children, women, and elderly civilians are being cowardly murdered,” and that truth must be “defended or barbarism will annihilate us.”
In a message that also puts the Colombian President on the side of South Africa and its stance on the issue of genocide against Israel, Petro called on the “entire region to unite immediately to end the violence in Palestine” and emphasized that the ruling of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Israel “must generate application and consequences in the diplomatic relations of all countries in the world.”
President Petro’s “complete solidarity” with Lula da Silva comes after diplomatic tensions between Israel and Brazil have escalated to the point that Israel’s Foreign Minister, Israel Katz, declared Lula a “persona non grata” and is not welcome in Israel until “he takes back” his words. “It is a serious antisemitic attack,” stated Minister Katz, adding that “We will not forget nor forgive.”
Speaking from an African Union summit in Ethiopia, Lula asserted that “what is happening in the Gaza Strip with the Palestinian people has no parallel in other historical moments. In fact, it did exist when Hitler decided to kill the Jews.” The socialist leader went on to characterize the conflict as a stark asymmetry, pitting a highly prepared army against women and children, further heightening the rhetoric.
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu was also quick to denounce Lula’s comments as “Holocaust trivialization” and an attempt to undermine the Jewish people’s right to defend themselves. The comparison between Israel’s actions and the atrocities committed by Hitler’s Nazi regime during the 1930s and 1940s, where six million Jewish people were systematically murdered, was deemed by Netanyahu as “crossing a red line.”
Lula’s endorsement of South Africa’s stance on the issue of genocide against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) adds another layer to the diplomatic fallout, and while the Brazilian President claims that what is happening in Gaza is “not a war of soldiers against soldiers,” Colombia’s Gustavo Petro has equally peddled the narrative on his social media that Israel’s actions are targeted against women and children, rather than the terrorist organization Hamas that uses civilians as human shields.
In December, the Israeli government slammed the Colombian President for “lack of knowledge and moral blindness” after he drew parallels between Nazis and the Israeli military offensive in Gaza while speaking at the United Nations Conference on Climate Change – COP28. Israel’s Eli Cohen went on to accuse Petro of promoting “baseless and anti-Semitic attacks” against the State of Israel.
Through his account on the social media platform X, the high-ranking official also claimed that these assaults by the Colombian president indicate “Holocaust denial.” In a strongly worded message, Cohen questioned why almost two months after the 7 October massacre, we still have yet to hear the President of Colombia unequivocally condemn the massacre committed by the Hamas monsters during which more than 1200 Israelis were murdered, entire families were executed in cold blood, children and babies were burned alive, Israeli citizens were beheaded, women were raped and murdered, and 240 Israelis, and foreigners were kidnapped to Gaza.”
Petro responded with a video post from a dubious Gaza-based news outlet showing Palestinian children crying amidst the rubble and carnage. The video was accompanied by a warning from the Colombian President that “Nazism is a form of fascism, profoundly violent and genocidal.” Cohen “personally” invited Petro to visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem to “learn the history of the Jewish people and the Holocaust before he expresses himself this way again.”
Foreign Minister Katz also summoned Brazil’s ambassador, Frederico Meyer, for a meeting at the Yad Vashem in an attempt to avoid further escalation in the diplomatic dispute.
While Lula has no intention of retracting his statements at the African Union, Petro remains vocal on social media with his anti-Israel message, at a time when his domestic agenda is under intense scrutiny. A question that arises is why Petro is escalating tensions in the Israel-Brazil row instead of fostering a more constructive dialogue on historically-sensitive issues
