Dubious assimilations by the Brazilian President

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s accusations against Israel for committing genocide in Gaza have sparked controversy and condemnation.

Speaking from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he attended an African Union summit, the Brazilian president drew parallels between Israel's actions and the Holocaust, equating the situation in Gaza with the extermination of Jews by the Nazi regime.

His statements, some of the most vehement ever made on the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, have been met with criticism.

Lula, a prominent voice in the Global South, currently holds the rotating presidency of the G20.

While initially condemning Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7 as a "terrorist" act, the 78-year-old leader has since been highly critical of Israel's retaliatory military campaign. The unprecedented Hamas attack on Israeli soil resulted in the deaths of 1,160 people, mostly civilians, and the kidnapping of around 250 individuals, with 130 still held in Gaza.

Additionally, Lula criticized the recent decisions of major Western donors to suspend funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA). Israel has accused 12 UNRWA employees of involvement in the Hamas attack.

Israel accused Brazilian President of trivialising the Holocaust and causing offence to the Jewish people on Sunday after he likened the Israeli war against Hamas militants in Gaza to the Nazi genocide during World War Two.

The Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem said it would summon the Brazilian ambassador for a reprimand over the remarks, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described as "disgraceful and grave".

"This is a trivialisation of the Holocaust and an attempt to attack the Jewish people and the right of Israel to self-defence. Drawing comparisons between Israel and the Nazis and Hitler is to cross a red line," Netanyahu said in a statement.