Brazilian radical leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva resumed his condemnation of Israel on Wednesday by once again accusing it of committing “genocide” in Gaza over its self-defense actions against the jihadist terrorist organization Hamas.
Lula, whose previous condemnations and antisemitic remarks against Israel have single-handedly strained the historically friendly relationship between both countries in recent weeks, once again accused Israel of “genocide” in Gaza during an event held in Brasília that commemorated the 44th anniversary of the ruling Worker’s Party (PT), which Lula founded.
The Brazilian president, right before singing a “happy birthday” to his PT party alongside Brazilian first lady Rosângela Lula da Silva and PT’s president Gleisi Hoffmann, called for Hamas to release the hostages that it still maintains in captivity since the October 7 terrorist attack — but demanded that Israel stop what he described as a “genocide” in Gaza.
“People who advocate peace in the world don’t have the courage to defend women and children in the Gaza Strip, who are being murdered every day, because that’s not a war, that’s genocide,” Lula said. “We have to have the courage to say these things, otherwise it’s not worth our time on planet Earth and it’s not even worth doing politics.”
Lula has repeatedly accused Israel of “murdering women and children” in its self-defense actions against Hamas.
“In the same way that we in the PT condemn the terrorist act of Hamas, in the same way that we defend that Hamas has to release the Israeli hostages, and that Israel has to release the Palestinian hostages, we have to say, no more killing women and children who have nothing to do with this war,” Lula said this week.
“Where is the UN, which should exist to prevent these things from happening?” he continued.
Since February, Lula has issued multiple condemnations of Israel in response to its self-defense actions against Hamas following the jihadist terrorist group’s unprecedented October 7 terrorist attack. Lula has fiercely demanded the United Nations recognize “Palestine” as a state with Jerusalem as its capital.
Lula’s similar comments in the past have caused significant diplomatic turmoil. During a press conference in February following his participation at the 37 African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Lula compared Israel’s self-defense actions to the actions of Nazi Germany and Adolf Hitler during the Holocaust.
“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,” Lula said at the time.
Lula’s Nazi Germany comparison led to diplomatic tensions between Israel and Brazil and prompted praise from Hamas, which called his remarks an “accurate description” of Gaza’s situation.
In response to his comments, Israel decided to designate Lula persona non grata, banning him from visiting Israel until he issued a formal apology. Brazilian government officials repeatedly insisted that no such apology would be issued, claiming instead that it is Israel who “must apologize” to humanity for its “genocide” in Gaza.
After being banned from Israel, Lula claimed in a television interview that his comparison of Israel’s self-defense actions to Nazi Germany during the Holocaust had not happened as reported.
“First of all, I didn’t say the word ‘Holocaust.’ ‘Holocaust’ was the interpretation of the Prime Minister of Israel. It wasn’t mine,” Lula said. “The second thing is this: death is death.”
Lula’s latest condemnation of Israel came shortly after Brazilian conservative governors Tarcísio de Freitas (São Paulo) and Ronaldo Caiado (Goiás) traveled to Israel to express their support of Israel and state that Lula’s statements did not represent the Brazilian population.
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz, who met with the governors, said that he was happy to meet with the “two great friends” of Israel, noting that Israel has not given up on the Brazilian people and their support of Israel despite Lula’s actions.
“I told them that we do not give up on the Brazilian people, who support the Jewish people and the State of Israel and sympathize with our just war against the murderous terrorist organization Hamas, and I thanked them for the touching solidarity they came to show to the people of Israel,” Katz said on a social media post.
“President Lula’s anti-Semitic statements will not tear our nations apart. Our shared values are the enemies of our enemies – together we will win,” he continued.
Fiquei feliz em me encontrar hoje com dois grandes amigos do Estado de Israel, o governador de São Paulo @tarcisiogdf e o governador de Goiás @ronaldocaiado, que representam dezenas de milhões de brasileiros e vieram apoiar Israel.
Eu disse a eles que não abrimos mão do povo… pic.twitter.com/HJRqFEWQtQ
— ישראל כ”ץ Israel Katz (@Israel_katz) March 21, 2024
Brazil’s Planalto presidential office claimed in a statement published on Wednesday that the conservative governors’ visit to Israel and denouncement of Lula “distorts” the Brazilian government’s position on the events occurring in Gaza.
“We regret that governors abroad distort Brazil’s position on the issue, at a time when the whole world is concerned about Palestinian civilians,” the statement reportedly read.
The statement also claimed that Lula “repeatedly condemned the Hamas attacks and did not speak against the Jewish people but against the actions of the current Israeli government, which were also criticized by governments around the world, including Europe and the United States, and which are the subject of a process by South Africa in The Hague.”
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.
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