Venezuela thanks Israel for quake aid in rare gesture after years without ties

Venezuela's interim president publicly thanked Israel for dispatching a team of disaster specialists following the country's devastating earthquakes, in a move that Ynetnews reported could signal a rare thaw in relations between the two countries.

According to the report, Interim President Delcy Rodríguez highlighted Israel's contribution despite the large number of international aid missions arriving in the country, praising the professionalism of the Israeli experts. She said the team reached Venezuela after coordination through the country's Jewish community and thanked Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Cohen for helping establish contact with the Israeli government.

Rodríguez said the Israeli delegation had already begun assessing damaged infrastructure and laying the groundwork for rehabilitation efforts. Venezuela's chief rabbi told Ynetnews the humanitarian mission could serve as an initial step toward restoring ties between Caracas and Jerusalem.

Israel's advance emergency delegation arrived in Venezuela earlier this week to prepare for a broader humanitarian mission following the earthquake. Led by Foreign Ministry representative Yoad Magen and Brig. Gen. Elad Edri of the IDF Home Front Command, the team has been meeting Venezuelan officials and emergency agencies to assess needs and coordinate the deployment of additional Israeli specialists.

The humanitarian mission comes despite the absence of diplomatic relations between Israel and Venezuela. Israeli officials have stressed that the operation is focused exclusively on disaster response, reconstruction and sharing Israel's expertise in earthquake recovery with local authorities.