Brazil recalls envoy to 'Israel', summons Israeli ambassador
2 Min Read
This comes after the Israeli Foreign Ministry declared on Sunday the Brazilian president "persona non grata."
-
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during a ministerial meeting to discuss infrastructure investment projects at Planalto Palace in Brasilia, on November 3, 2023 (AFP)
Brazil recalled its ambassador to "Israel" on Monday and summoned the Israeli ambassador to the country, the Brazilian Foreign Ministry announced, as reported by Reuters. This comes shortly after the Israeli Foreign Minister announced that Brazilian President Lula Da Silva was "persona non grata" after he likened Israeli atrocities in Gaza to Hitler's actions in Nazi Germany.
The war on the Strip is nearing its 5-month mark with over 100,000 Palestinians either killed or wounded.
Lula said on Sunday that "Israel" is committing "genocide" against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, likening its crimes to "Adolf Hitler's in Nazi Germany." This was not Lula's first time to draw such comparisons, nor was he the first world leader to do so.
Read more: ICJ orders 'Israel' to halt genocidal acts; fails to order ceasefire
During an African Union summit in Addis Ababa, the Brazilian President said, "What's happening in the Gaza Strip isn't a war, it's a genocide," detailing that Israeli troops were not fighting "soldiers against soldiers," but rather a highly prepared army against "women and children."
He expressed that what was going on in Palestine had happened in the past when Hitler "decided to kill the Jews."
Read more: Gantz threatens Rafah invasion by Ramadan
In response, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz told the Brazilian ambassador that Lula's comments were "antisemitic" and would not be forgiven or forgotten.
Lula has been repeatedly critical of the Israeli onslaught on Palestine.
At a summit at the Arab League in Cairo, Egypt, on Thursday, he criticized the United Nations for its failure to address international conflicts and harshly condemned "Israel's" actions in Gaza.
"Israel's behavior has no explanation: with the pretext of fighting Hamas, it is killing women and children," he said after a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
