Brazil-Israel row escalates after Lula da Silva declared persona non grata over 'Hitler’s genocide' remark

The Brazil-Israel row escalated on Monday after Tel Aviv declared Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva persona non grata for his “Hitler’s genocide in Gaza” remark and in a tit-for-tat move Brazil recalled its ambassador over the issue.

The row erupted when Lula said the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip “isn’t a war, it’s a genocide,” and compared it to “when Hitler decided to kill the Jews”.

“In my name and in the name of the citizens of the State of Israel - inform President Lula that he is an unwanted personality in Israel until he does not retract,” Anadolu Agency, a state-run news agency headquartered in Ankara, quoted Foreign Minister Israel Katz telling Brazil’s Ambassador Federico Mayer after he was summoned for reprimand.

Katz said Israel “will not forget and we will not forgive” until the president expresses contrition for his words, added the report, citing a statement issued by the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

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“The comparison between Israel’s just war against Hamas, and the atrocities of Hitler and the Nazis, is a shame and disgrace and a serious anti-Semitic attack,” Katz said.

On Sunday, da Silva while addressing reporters in Addis Ababa, where he attended an African Union summit, accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza saying “what’s happening in the Gaza Strip isn’t a war, it’s a genocide.”

“It’s not a war of soldiers against soldiers. It’s a war between a highly prepared army and women and children,” he added.

“What’s happening in the Gaza Strip with the Palestinian people hasn’t happened at any other moment in history. Actually, it has happened: when Hitler decided to kill the Jews,” he remarked.

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Israel decried da Silva’s statements, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying the Brazilian president “crossed a red line.”

According to Israeli public broadcaster KAN, da Silva recalled his ambassador from Israel for talks amid a crisis between the two countries.

Israel initiated a lethal offensive in the Gaza Strip following a Hamas attack on October 7. The resultant Israeli airstrikes have caused approximately 29,092 fatalities and left around 69,028 people wounded, leading to widespread destruction and shortages of essential supplies.

The conflict has forced 85 per cent of Gaza’s population into internal displacement, exacerbating critical shortages of food, clean water, and medicine. Additionally, 60 per cent of the enclave’s infrastructure has suffered damage or complete destruction, according to the UN.

Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice. In an interim ruling issued in January, Tel Aviv was instructed to cease genocidal activities and ensure the provision of humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza.

With inputs from agencies