Palestinian solidarity groups welcomed the election of Chile’s next president Gabriel Boric, who has openly criticized illegal Jewish settlements in occupied Palestine, The New Arab reported on Tuesday.
Chile has elected Gabriel Boric, a left-wing former student protest leader, as its youngest-ever president.
The 35-year-old – who called Israel a “murderous state” – has previously campaigned for a boycott of goods, services and products from illegal Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights.
Chile’s new president is pro-Palestinian https://t.co/LZvegyHjt2 #Chile 🇨🇱 #Palestine 🇵🇸 thanks @gabrielboric for standing on the right side of history and peace and justice
— PLO Department of Public Diplomacy & Policy (@PalestinePDP) December 22, 2021
His victory over far-right opponent Jose Antonio Kast, in which he clinched 56 percent of the vote in a record turnout, has been hailed as a triumph for the global left and a step in the right direction for the international pro-Palestine movement.
“Israel has been granted impunity by the world’s governments for decades,” said Ben Jamal, Director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, to The New Arab.
“This in defiance of the shift in global popular opinion and international civil society, that has increasingly called for meaningful action to hold Israel to account for its violations of international law and Palestinian rights. The election of a leader with a track record of calling for sanctions is to be welcomed.”
As a lawmaker, Boric supported a draft bill in Chile’s National Congress calling for a boycott of exports from illegal Jewish settlements.
Gabriel Boric, a left-wing lawmaker who has been sharply critical of Israel and also supports boycotts against goods from Israeli settlements in occupied Palestine, has been elected president of Chile in a landslide victory.https://t.co/Q8aTuoTpla
— PALESTINE ONLINE 🇵🇸 (@OnlinePalEng) December 21, 2021
On receiving a gift of honey from Chile’s Jewish community in 2019, attached with a note calling for “a more inclusive supportive and respectful society”, the leftist politician said in response: “I appreciate the gesture but they could start by asking Israel to return the illegally occupied Palestinian territory.”
During his campaign, Boric called Israel a “murderous state” in a meeting with the Jewish community.
He has also signed a pro-Palestine statement of support in a meeting with the president of Chile’s 350,000 strong Palestinian community, reportedly the largest Palestinian community outside the Arab world.
(The New Arab, PC, Social Media)
