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Brazil recalls ambassador following public reprimand in Jerusalem
Diplomatic rift threatens to expand as Brazil's Foreign Minister also summoned the Israeli ambassador for a meeting
Brazil has recalled its ambassador to Israel, following a public dressing down by Foreign Minister Israel Katz on Monday, and summoned the Israeli ambassador to Brazil for a meeting.
The development of the diplomatic row comes after Katz's reprimand of Brasilia's envoy, Federico Mayer, in response to remarks made by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in which he compared Israel's operation in Gaza to the Nazi genocide of the Jews.
During the summons on Monday, the Israeli foreign minister declared that President Lula was persona non grata in Israel until he withdrew his comments. Israel's Minister of Immigration and Absorption also canceled a pre-planned meeting with the Brazilian ambassador that had been scheduled for Monday in light of the fracas.
Following Jerusalem's reprimand, Lula recalled his ambassador "for consultations," while Brazil's Foreign Minister also summoned the Israeli ambassador, Daniel Zonshine, for a meeting. According to CNN Brasil, the meeting in Rio de Janeiro lasted approximately thirty minutes, with Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira taking a "polite, but firm" tone, but he did not demand an apology from the Israeli envoy.
“If we want to preserve bilateral relations, which is in the interest of both sides, what happened today does not contribute anything,” Vieira was reported as saying.
The Brazilian Foreign Ministry called the public reprimand, which took place at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum with local media invited, a "spectacle." The Brazilian side was reportedly "surprised" when the Israeli Foreign Minister addressed the press in Hebrew, without providing a translation in Portuguese for the ambassador. Sources close to the Brazilian Foreign Minister said he considered the event outside the bounds of normal diplomatic practice.
The diplomatic spat was triggered on Sunday, when Lula told reporters at the African Union Summit, “What is happening in the Gaza Strip with the Palestinian people has no parallel in other historical moments," but went on to add, “it did exist when Hitler decided to kill the Jews.” It drew an immediate rebuke from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who called the statement "shameful."