Wiesenthal Center Accuses Chilean President of ‘Antisemitism’ Following Support for ICJ Case Against Israel

The Latin American branch of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, a Jewish global human rights organization, denounced far-left Chilean President Gabriel Boric in a public letter on Monday for repeated slights against Israel and the Jewish people.

The Buenos Aires-based center issued the letter in response to Boric’s Saturday announcement that Chile would pledge its efforts toward a case brought by South Africa against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). South Africa is accusing Israel of committing a “genocide” in its self-defense operations against the jihadist terrorist group Hamas, which slaughtered 1,200 people and abducted hundreds in an unprecedented attack against Israel on October 7. South Africa has welcomed Hamas terrorists since the attack.

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Boric announced his support for South Africa’s case against Israel in remarks given as part of his annual State of the Nation speech.

The Wiesenthal Center statement listed actions that Boric committed against either the government of Israel or the Jewish community in Chile, stating that he is the first Chilean president since the nation’s return to democracy who refused to receive the credentials of an Israeli ambassador. In September 2022, Boric, in what was reportedly a “last-minute decision,” chose not to receive Israeli Ambassador Gil Artzyeli in the Chilean presidential palace. Following the impasse generated by his decision, Boric ultimately received the Israeli ambassador at the end of that month.

The letter also mentioned Boric’s decision to exclude Israel from the International Air and Space Fair (FIDAE), Latin America’s largest aerospace fair, which Chile hosted in March. Additionally, the letter said Boric “refused to make a single gesture of empathy for the victims of the October 7 massacre in Israel.”

“Since his days as a congressman, he announced a furious antisemitism when he rejected a gift from the Jewish Community to celebrate Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year), claiming that Israel was a genocidal state,” the letter read.

At the time, the Jewish Community of Chile, a civil society organization, sent a jar of honey to then-Congressman Boric as part of the Jewish New Year traditions. The gift was accompanied by a letter, in which the Jewish Community of Chile reaffirmed “its commitment to a more inclusive, respectful society with more solidarity.”

In a still publicly available post on X, Boric “appreciated” the gift but suggested that the Jewish civil society organization “could begin by asking Israel to return the illegally occupied Palestinian territory.”

Wiesenthal Center Latin American Director Ariel Gelblung said in the letter:

Official anti-Semitism is becoming a daily danger for the members of the Jewish Community of Chile. In this same week, in the Pedagogical Institute that certifies teachers, the expulsion of Jewish professors was requested, as they were accused of being Zionist defenders of Israel’s infanticidal policy, emulating Nazi Germany. Mobs are common in front of Jewish institutions, harassing the attendants.

Gelblung continued:

Chile has a serious problem of terrorist groups in the southern region that vandalize properties and have set fire to places of worship of different faiths. How would Chileans react if when the government took measures to protect civilians the world sided with the attackers? … The Simon Wiesenthal Center has long urged President Boric and his government to be cautious in their policies regarding the Middle East, which they have definitely not done. From our institution we will continue to expose his discriminatory policies, and denounce those that demonize Israel and put the Jewish Community at risk.

In his Saturday speech before the Chilean Congress, Boric once again condemned Israel’s self-defense operations against Hamas in Gaza, claiming that his government will “never, never stop being indignant over the indiscriminate and absolutely disproportionate actions against innocent civilians, particularly Palestinian women and children, that the Israeli military is conducting.”

“These acts require a firm and permanent response from the international community,” he asserted.

The Jewish Community of Chile condemned Boric shortly after he announced Chile’s support for South Africa’s ICJ case against Israel. In a statement published on social media, the Jewish organization described Boric’s decision as a “grave error from the judicial point of view and of foreign policy.”

“We feel profoundly affected by decisions that appear to prioritize ideological interests over the wellbeing of all citizens,” the statement read. “These decisions not only distort reality and feed polarization, but also contribute to the concerning increase in antisemitism in our country.”

Boric recalled Chilean ambassador to Israel Jorge Carvajal in November 2023, alleging that the diplomatic measure was in response to the “unacceptable violations of international humanitarian law committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip.”

Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.