Brazil president withdraws his country’s ambassador to Israel after criticizing the war in Gaza

By ELÉONORE HUGHES
Associated Press

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has withdrawn his ambassador to Israel after months of tensions between the two countries over the war in Gaza. It’s the latest repercussion from a South American nation over Israel’s military campaign in the Palestinian territory. Wednesday’s move was announced in Brazil’s official gazette. Lula has been a frequent critic of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, which he compared to the Holocaust earlier this year. That led Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz to summon the Brazilian ambassador to the national Holocaust museum in Jerusalem for a public reprimand. Israel says its war in Gaza is a defensive action triggered by Hamas’ unprecedented assault and rejects any comparisons of its offensive to the Holocaust.