The Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, escalated the tone again in opposition to the Israeli military massacre in Gaza Strip in the last weeks. During a meeting with the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in Paris, Lula classified the offensive from Israel as a “planned genocide by an extreme right wing governant”.
“What is happening in Gaza is not a war, what’s happening there is a genocide carried out by a highly trained Army against women and children”, said him to journalists. Lula also supported that the international community should say “enough” to the military campaign in Gaza and pointed out that “it is sad to know that the world keeps silent facing a genocide”.
On Wednesday (4th), the Itamaraty Palace (the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs) had already expressed an opinion about Palestinians deaths that looked for humanitarian aid, shot by Israeli troops. “The use of hunger as a weapon of war and violence against civilians searching for food are absolutely unacceptable,” the ministry said in its statement.
According to Itamaraty, Brazil supports independent investigations into the circumstances of recent attacks that occurred at humanitarian aid centers run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
Despite the strong rhetoric and accusation of genocide, civil society organizations and pro-Palestinian movements grow pressure for concrete actions against the Israeli government. On Friday (6th), a letter with more than 12,000 signatures was handed directly to Lula during his official visit to Paris, demanding that the federal government adopt tangible measures against Israel.
The Palestinian genocide, that takes place in the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023, has already resulted in nearly 55,000 deaths, most of them women and children. In addition to bomb attacks, the entire population of over 2 million people in the territory face a severe risk of undernutrition, as Israel blocks food aid. Dozens of deaths from starvation have already been registered, mainly among young children and the elderly.
Brazilian civil society calls for effective actions, such as the immediate severance of diplomatic and trade relations with Israel. The document, organized by the BDS Brazil movement (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions), demands the end of the Brazilian-Israeli free trade agreement, suspension of military cooperation, an energy embargo, among other sanctions.
The open letter has the support of prominent figures in Brazilian culture, law, and politics. Signatories include artists such as Chico Buarque, Ney Matogrosso, Letícia Sabatella, Milton Hatoum, and Gregório Duvivier; magistrates Carol Proner and Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro; former minister Guilherme Estrella; and the philosopher Vladimir Safatle. Politicians from the Workers’ Party (PT) and Socialism and Liberty Party (PSOL), such as Guilherme Boulos, Erika Hilton, Sâmia Bomfim, Luiza Erundina, and João Daniel, also signed the letter.
This position is also supported by the Landless Workers’ Movement (MST, abbreviation in Portuguese). “We believe it is time for the Brazilian government to take a stronger posture on this issue, not only the genocide in Gaza but also the broader genocide against the Palestinian people and others affected by the Zionist state of Israel,” said Ceres Hadich, from MST’s National Leadership.
Hadich supports the Brazilian government to take concrete steps, including severing diplomatic and trade ties with Israel, as well as taking measures of solidarity with the Palestinian people. “We fully agree that these diplomatic relations must be ended immediately and that we must acknowledge the genocide and act concretely to reverse it.”
To Miriam Gomes Saraiva, a professor in the International Relations department at UERJ, the Brazilian government is responding appropriately to the situation. “Not only has President Lula called it genocide, not for the first time, but South Africa has also filed a claim at the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocide, and Brazil has formally supported this request. So, I believe Brazil is taking the possible steps it can, through its statements and by supporting the case at the court that accuses Israel of genocide.”
Saraiva believes that ceasing diplomatic relations would be “unusual” for Brazilian diplomacy. “Completely severing ties with a country is generally rare, even with Israel. Some countries have brought back their ambassadors, but few have fully ended relations. So, in practical terms, it wouldn’t change much. Brazil currently has no ambassador there, which shows already the last step before a rupture. It’s not as if the relations are good, they’re not.”
The professor also highlights singularities in the relationship with the State of Israel that complicate the severing: the strong global political influence from Jewish communities, including in Brazil.
“Israel often sees criticism of its government as antisemitism. Which, obviously, isn’t true. However, the Israeli government frequently plays this card. Severing ties could also mean taking on a confrontation with this Jewish community”, said Saraiva.
To Brasil de Fato, a source from Itamaraty said that Brazil “does not sever diplomatic relations.” “We are one of the very few—perhaps only ten—countries in the world that maintain diplomatic relations with all other nations. This is a strength of our diplomacy. Severing ties tends to be a tool of domestic politics, and Brazil does not use or exploit that tool. It’s not part of Brazilian diplomatic tradition, and preserving that tradition is very positive. Our international partners do not expect Brazil to discontinue diplomatic relations. So the measure would, in fact, be pointless.”
The source argued that severing relations with a country would mean that, in every future crisis, such a move might again be required, which could seriously jeopardize Brazilian diplomacy, whose main qualities in the international context are stability and predictability.
“Severing relations is a media movement. We don’t do diplomacy under the spotlight, and never have,” the source emphasized.
