Yoav Gallant, Israel's defense minister, says comparing attacks on Gaza to the Holocaust is 'disgusting and outrageous'
Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant classified this Sunday (February 18, 2024) as “despicable” and “outrageous” the statements made by the President of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), in which he compared the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip by Holocaust during World War II.
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“Accusing Israel of committing a Holocaust is outrageous and despicable. Brazil has stood by Israel for years. President Lula supports a genocidal terrorist organization Hamas. “In doing so, he brings great shame to his people and violates the values of the free world.” he wrote the Israeli minister.
During a review of his participation in the African Union summit in Ethiopia this Sunday morning (February 18), Lula explained that Israel's military operation in the Gaza Strip follows the same line as the extermination of Jews carried out by Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany.
“It is important to remember that Brazil was the first country to recognize the Palestinian state in 2010. We have to stop being small when we need to be big. What is happening to the Palestinian people in Gaza does not exist at any other point in history. In fact, it existed when Hitler decided to kill the Jews,” Lula told reporters in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also reacted to the speech. He called the comparison “shameful” and announced that he would invite the Brazilian ambassador to the country for a “tough reprimand” on Monday (February 19).
“The words of the Brazilian president are shameful and serious. “It’s about trivializing the Holocaust and trying to harm the Jewish people and Israel’s right to selfdefense,” Netanyahu said.
Interviewed by Power360Brazilian Ambassador to Israel Frederico Meyer said no meeting had yet been scheduled with foreign authorities to discuss the matter.