Brazil's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE) confirmed on Wednesday, July 23, that it is “in the final stages of submitting a formal intervention in the ongoing proceedings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), brought by South Africa on the basis of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.”

According to a public statement from the MRE, “the decision is based on the duty of States to comply with their obligations under international law and international humanitarian law in view of the plausibility that the rights of Palestinians to protection against acts of genocide are being irreversibly harmed, as concluded by the International Court of Justice in precautionary measures announced in 2024.”

Thus, Brazil, at least formally, joins a movement of official protest against the genocide of the Palestinian people.

However, the South American country's path to complete and concrete pressure against the genocide perpetrated by "Israel" with the explicit support of the US and the shameful support of Europe has been tortuous and slower than it could have been.

In December 2023, the South African government filed a case with the ICJ to initiate proceedings on allegations of genocide against "Israel" in the war against the Palestinian population.

But despite repeated statements by Brazilian President Lula da Silva against the genocide of the Palestinian people, and now the intention to follow South Africa to the ICJ, the Brazilian state-owned company Petrobras continues to supply oil to "Israel".

According to the Brazilian news site UOL, “data from Brazil's oil sector regulatory agency reveal that in 2024, Brazil significantly expanded its oil exports to Israel, exporting 2.98 million barrels of oil, a 51% increase over the previous year. This volume represents about 0.5% of all Brazilian exports of the product during the period.”

Also according to UOL, ANP data show that "Israel" was the 11^th largest buyer of Brazilian oil in the first five months of 2025. Brasília also exports significant quantities of soybeans and beef.

Moreover, the Brazilian Armed Forces, unconditional allies of the United States since the mid-20th century, and state public security systems continue to acquire surveillance systems supplied by companies owned by the Israeli government and private capital in that country.

In addition, in October 2023, the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies approved a military agreement with "Israel". The document still needs to be submitted to the Senate and then signed into law by President Lula da Silva.

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International law experts, representatives of the Arab-Palestinian community in Brazil, and pro-Palestinian activists, who advocate for the suspension of Brazil's economic ties with "Israel", view Brazil's stance with a mixture of support and skepticism.

“It is a wise move by the Brazilian government and Brazilian diplomacy,” says Brazilian-Palestinian Ualid Rabah, president of the Palestinian Arab Federation in Brazil (Fepal). “On more than one occasion, President Lula has been one of the world leaders to address the genocide and compare it to Nazi crimes.”

Rabah also notes that “Brazil ended up doing other things that were not on the radar, which is curious. Brazil canceled the purchase of military weapons and training, which would have been provided by an Israeli subsidiary in Brazil, Elbit System. President Lula also did not ratify agreements with Israel in the areas of military, security, and technology, which are implicated in Palestine, the occupation, and apartheid. In practice, Brazil also downgraded its diplomatic relations with Israel by not granting credentials to the Israeli ambassador to Brazil and has not sent a Brazilian ambassador to Tel Aviv for a year. Joining South Africa in the ICJ is now obviously a step forward."

However, the president of Fepal also notes that “we still need to break relations with the colonial and genocidal state of Israel,” he says.

“Israel exports huge quantities of fertilizers to Brazil because the previous government (2019-20222), led by former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, an ally of Israel and the US, adopted a policy that harmed Brazil, with Petrobras stopping fertilizer production,” Rabah said. “Brazil has nothing to lose by breaking off economic ties with Israel because Tel Aviv runs a trade deficit with Brazil,” he adds. Other analysts agree.

"First, it's great that Brazil is joining South Africa, but it's great on a symbolic level and in the sense that it will be one more country to speak out before the Court to identify the ongoing genocide. Of course, everything depends on what Brazil will say before the Court and the force with which it will do so. However, it is too little, too late," said Brazilian lawyer Salem Nasser, who specializes in international law.

“I was surprised to discover that Brazil did not participate in the Bogotá group! Brazil should do much more. The examples of oil and surveillance systems are two key cases, but they show that Brazil still acts as if everything is normal with Israel,” added Nasser, who is also a university professor and has been politically persecuted in his workplace for defending Palestinian self-determination.

The bloc of countries Nasser refers to is called the Hague Group. It was created to support the challenge to Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory and includes Bolivia, Belize, Cuba, Colombia, Honduras, Malaysia, Namibia, Senegal, and South Africa.

In Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, they announced on Wednesday (16) a series of sanctions against "Israel", including an international embargo on the export and import of weapons manufactured by Tel Aviv.

According to Débora Andrade, a member of the BDS movement, which advocates for international divestment from "Israel", “we believe that Brazil's support for South Africa's action at the ICJ must be accompanied by Brazil's fulfillment of its obligations under international treaties to impose a military and energy embargo on Israel, especially in light of the genocide perpetrated in Gaza and human rights violations in the West Bank.”

Overall, Rabah, Nasser, and Andrade express the average opinions of a broad spectrum of support that the Palestinian cause has in Brazil. However, political disputes in Brazilian society have led to very cautious opinions and positions on the part of Lula's government.

Lula is already campaigning for re-election, which will take place in 2026, and the far-right opposition in Brazil has been working closely with US President Donald Trump, who is threatening Brasília with all sorts of retaliation, aiming to undermine the torturous paths against genocide adopted by Brazil.