Israel Summons Brazil Ambassador After Lula’s Comments on Gaza

Katz calls comparison with Holocaust ‘shameful and serious’
Rotating president of the G-20 helps set tone of Global South

Lula arrives at the 37th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union (AU) in Addis Ababa on Feb. 17.Photographer: Amanuel Sileshi/AFP/Getty Images

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By Marissa Newman and Maria Eloisa Capurro

February 18, 2024 at 5:09 PM UTC

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Israel summoned Brazil’s ambassador for a reprimand after President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva compared its war on Hamas with Adolf Hitler’s extermination of Jews during the Holocaust.

“The words of the Brazilian president are shameful and serious,” Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz said in a statement. “No one will harm Israel’s right to defend itself.”