A group of medics help the wounded after an Israeli bomb attack in Gaza this Monday.MOHAMMED SABER (EFE)
Latin America has come together to condemn the violence and call for the restoration of peace in the Middle East. Governments in the region have lamented the recent conflict between Israel and Palestine and reiterated calls for dialogue to end hostilities between Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and Hamas as attacks in Gaza increase. “We don’t want war, we are for peace,” said Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador this Monday, one of the last heads of state and government to speak out. Countries are alert to reports of casualties and have initiated diplomatic efforts to evacuate their citizens from conflict zones. Argentina reported four dead compatriots, while the number of missing people of various nationalities is increasing.
Argentina, the country with the largest Jewish community in Latin America, is closely following the war that broke out in Israel this weekend. Both President Alberto Fernández and the main candidates to replace him have condemned the Hamas attack. Authorities confirmed that at least four were missing. Fernández not only expressed solidarity with the Israeli people on Saturday, but also announced the dispatch of humanitarian aid.
In this Sunday’s election debate, all candidates, with the exception of socialist Myriam Bregman, began their speech with a message of solidarity with Israel for the attack. Argentina has felt the violence of Islamic terrorism firsthand: in 1992, an attack on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires claimed 22 lives, and in 1994, the attack on the Jewish mutual society AMIA left 85 people dead.
Argentine Foreign Minister Santiago Cafiero has announced that he is “in constant contact with our embassy, the consulate general and the Israeli government to locate, assist or provide information to Argentines, depending on the situation.” Find them.” A total of 235 Argentines have contacted the diplomatic authorities and asked to be evacuated from the country as quickly as possible.
Mexico announced two humanitarian flights to Tel Aviv to repatriate around 300 citizens, most of them tourists, stranded after the conflict broke out. Authorities announced over the weekend that they were investigating the case of two Mexicans kidnapped by Hamas. One of the victims was identified by her family as Ilana Gritzewsky, who lived in Kibbutz Niz Or, a few kilometers from Gaza. The other is Orión Hernández, who attended a concert in Palestine with his girlfriend of German and Israeli nationality. López Obrador updated the number of missing people to three and said they were already in contact with their families.
“Mexico advocates a comprehensive and final solution to the conflict under the premise of two states, which addresses Israel’s legitimate security concerns and enables the consolidation of a politically and economically viable Palestinian state,” the foreign minister said in a statement. Foreign Relations. Around 5,000 Mexicans live in Israeli and Palestinian territory.
Join EL PAÍS to follow all the news and read without restrictions.
Subscribe to
Two Colombians, Ivonne Rubio and Antonio Mesías Montaño, are missing. They are 26 and 29 years old and have two children aged six and three. They attended the electronic music festival attacked by Hamas and there has been no news about them since Saturday. She managed to call her father at the start of the attack and tell him what was going on. The Colombian consulate helped about 200 other people, but all are out of danger and were in other areas of Israel.
The official reactions have now caused debate. The State Department released an initial statement on Saturday that included, among other things, a “strong condemnation of the terrorism against civilians that occurred this morning.” [sábado] in Israel” and which he deleted a few moments later. A few hours later, he posted another in which he “expresses his strongest condemnation of the attacks on civilians that occurred yesterday and today” and made no mention of either terrorism or Israel. The call to pursue dialogue between Israel and Palestine without explicit condemnation of Hamas echoes statements made repeatedly by President Gustavo Petro on his social networks.
“I was shocked by the terrorist attacks against civilians in Israel, which caused numerous victims,” said Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, condemning “terrorism in all its forms.” The president said his country would spare no effort to find a peaceful solution and called an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, which he chairs. The government estimates that around thirty Brazilians live in Gaza and has deployed six aircraft to support its citizens. The first humanitarian flight is scheduled to arrive on Tuesday.
News of two missing people is expected in Peru, but the outcome is preliminary. They are Daniel Levi, a Peruvian-Israeli doctor who treated patients at the Soroka Medical Center in Israel, and Rufina Pereyra, a citizen who traveled to Israel on vacation. More than 4,000 Peruvians live in Israel, most of them in Ramla, a city far from the Gaza Strip. Dina Boluarte’s government has not yet commented on the conflict. The outgoing government of Ecuador, celebrating its presidential elections this Sunday, did so by condemning Hamas’s “terrorist attacks” and reaffirming its commitment to a negotiated, final and fair solution for the parties.
In Chile, home to around half a million citizens of Palestinian origin, the largest diaspora outside the Middle East, President Gabriel Boric expressed his “absolute condemnation” but avoided describing the attacks as acts of terrorism. Boric has previously expressed sympathy for the cause of Palestine and spoken out against the “illegal occupation” of Israel. His government called for “an end to this unreasonable violence to prevent an escalation that will cause greater harm and suffering to the civilian population.” The South American country is mourning the deaths of two people of Chilean descent and has provided a plane for about 200 tourists who have been unable to leave the country, although more flights are planned. Other than the case of a missing Chilean woman, no deaths, injuries or abductions have been officially reported.
The Boric government is embroiled in its position on the conflict. Israeli Ambassador to Chile Gil Artzyeli called Foreign Minister Alberto Van Klaveren’s comment on the Middle East crisis “unfortunate” and “unfortunate.” The Foreign Minister assured via social networks that “the use of violence against civilians in armed conflict is never acceptable, even in the exercise of legitimate defense.” “We call on all parties involved in acts of violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories to respect this fundamental principle “This applies to Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the State of Israel and all other actors who intervene in the conflict.”
In Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, echoing Petro, demanded that the Israeli government “immediately and completely halt all settlement and occupation activities in Palestinian territory as the only path to peace.” He also called for a more active role for the United Nations in recognizing Palestine’s demands. Caracas made no mention of Hamas or the attack on Israeli civilians. Former Bolivian President Evo Morales condemned Israel’s “imperialist and colonial actions.” Cuba expressed its “grave concerns” and argued that the violence was “a consequence of 75 years of constant violation of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.”
In contrast, Central America focused on condemning the attacks on Israel. Salvadoran Nayib Bukele, of Palestinian descent, called Hamas “beasts” and “animals” and said the Islamist group does not represent Palestine. Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei reiterated his condolences and support for Tel Aviv “in light of the unjustified attacks.” Costa Rica demanded the release of the hostages.
With information from Mar Centenera, Juan Esteban Lewin, Elias Camhaji, Rocio Montes And Ines Santaeulalia
Subscribe here Subscribe to the EL PAÍS México newsletter and receive all the important information on current events in this country