Colombia on Monday demanded that Israel’s ambassador leave the South American country amid worsening tensions with Tel Aviv.
Colombian Foreign Minister Alvaro Leyva said that the envoy, Gali Dagan, should “at a minimum, apologize and leave” after criticizing Petro’s comparison of Israeli attacks on Gaza with the Nazi persecution of the Jews.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro threatened on Sunday to suspend diplomatic relations with Tel Aviv, following Israel’s decision to halt military sales to his country due to his stance on the Israeli military attack on Gaza.https://t.co/dQgoocwjFQ pic.twitter.com/IUSSxX5ZeC
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) October 16, 2023
Colombian President Gustavo Petro had threatened, on Sunday, to suspend diplomatic relations with Tel Aviv, following Israel’s decision to halt military sales to his country due to his stance on the Israeli military attack on Gaza.
“If we have to suspend foreign relations with Israel, we will suspend them. We do not support genocides. The president of Colombia will not be insulted,” Petro said on X.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Haiat condemned Pedro’s statements, slamming them as “supportive of Hamas atrocities” and announced that he had summoned the Colombian ambassador to Israel “by instruction of Foreign Minister Eli Cohen”.
GAZA HEALTH MINISTRY: the number of Palestinians killed and wounded in the Israeli war on Gaza rose to 2,808. 10,859 were wounded.
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— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) October 16, 2023
Following the launch of the ‘Al-Aqsa Flood’ operation on October 7, Pedro had refused to condemn attacks by the Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas, drawing comparisons between the situation in Gaza and the Auschwitz concentration camp during World War II.
On Sunday, Pedro also declared that Colombia will send humanitarian aid to Gaza, and urged the United Nations to hold a special session of the General Assembly.
(PC, ANADOLU)
