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Notwithstanding present tensions, Latin America has a long legacy of friendship with Israel.
Thirteen Latin American powers voted for the UN resolution paving the path to Israel’s creation in 1947. At the time, Latin American countries comprised about 20% of UN member states, but nearly 40% of those who voted for Jewish statehood.
Latin American powers remained friendly with Israel even after the Yom Kippur War, despite immense pressure from the Arab world.
Latin America’s kinship with Israel should be well understood. We share so many values, from community and family to liberty and democracy. We have similar national stories, having wrested independence from powers larger than ourselves.
Israel’s terrorist enemies are the antithesis of everything we and the whole free world believe.
Diplomatically, the path may be fraught with difficulty. But this visit to the region should inspire hope.
Israel and the Jewish people faced some of our darkest hours in Paraguay and Argentina. In 1970, PLO terrorists stormed Israel’s embassy in Asuncion, murdering Edna Peer, the first Israeli diplomat slain overseas.
In 1992, an Iran-backed suicide bomber slammed a pickup truck loaded with explosives into Israel’s Embassy in Buenos Aires, murdering 29. In 1994, the AMIA bombing in Buenos Aires would mark the deadliest attack against Jews since the Holocaust – until October 7.
And yet, precisely where we struggled, we also succeeded. Paraguay and Argentina are now champions of Israel on the world stage. It is they who have invited me, as the representative of the Knesset and the people of Israel, to rally support for Israel and our righteous war to bring every single hostage home.
Paraguay and Argentina, besides being Israel’s best friends in Latin America, are among our closest allies in the world.
Facing adversity, we cannot retreat but must press forward. We need to boldly make the case for Israel and fearlessly face down Israel’s harshest critics, especially in their own backyard.
The writer is speaker of the Knesset.
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Publish date : 2024-09-20 14:23:00
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