Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva attends a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/Pool

Jewish leadership in Brazil has accused President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of pushing “antisemitic libel” against Israel during a speech in Moscow on Saturday.

Lula accused Israel of “attacking women and children under the pretext of killing terrorists,” described its war against the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas as “a genocide,” and claimed the Jewish state struck hospitals which did not contain Hamas members.

The Brazilian Israelite Confederation (CONIB), the country’s leading Jewish organization, denounced Lula for his claims.

“It is regrettable and disturbing that the president of our country continues to promote this antisemitic libel throughout the world,” CONIB President Claudio Lottenberg said in a statement. “Brazil is a country where the Jewish community lives in peace and security, but President Lula, with his antisemitic statements, seems to want to create problems for our community by promoting antisemitism among his supporters, in an irresponsible and destructive attitude.”

Lottenberg added that “Hamas started this terrible war and is hiding behind the civilian population and Israeli hostages to promote its genocidal vision of exterminating Israel and the Jews.”

Hamas-led Palestinian terrorists launched the current conflict with their Oct. 7, 2023, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel.

Israel says it has gone to unprecedented lengths in its military response to try and avoid civilian casualties in Gaza, noting its efforts to evacuate areas before it targets them and to warn residents of impending military operations with leaflets, text messages, and other forms of communication. Another challenge for Israel is Hamas’s widely recognized military strategy of embedding its terrorists within Gaza’s civilian population and commandeering civilian facilities like hospitals, schools, and mosques to run operations and direct attacks.

In February, Lula also received pushback for comparing Israel to Nazi Germany and the war in Gaza to the Holocaust — a comparison described as an example of anti-Jewish hate under the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism.

“What is happening in the Gaza Strip with the Palestinian people does not exist at any other historical moment … In fact, it existed when Hitler decided to kill the Jews,” Lula said at the time.

“Brazil is a country of peace, with a historical message of coexistence and balance. President Lula’s deplorable comparison between Israel’s just war against Hamas with the truly genocidal crimes of Hitler and the Nazis against the Jews during the Holocaust is rejected by the vast majority of the Brazilian population,” Dr. Ariel Gelblung, the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s Director for Latin America, said in response. “What is worse, he denies the antisemitic nature of his statements, hiding behind Brazil’s IHRA observer status. However, his national administration does not adopt the definition or present plans to become a full member.”

In May 2024, Lula recalled Brazil’s ambassador from Israel, resulting in a persona non grata status according to Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz.

In January, an unnamed Israeli tourist fled Brazil when a court started an investigation into his time as a soldier fighting in Gaza.

“I am embarrassed for Brazil and its government, who surrendered to the pro-Palestinian legal terrorism,” Yuli Edelstein, chair of the Israeli parliament’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, said in response.

According to the World Jewish Congress, 92,000 Jews call Brazil home, which ranks as 10th largest globally and second in Latin America after Argentina. The group says that “Brazilian Jews usually enjoy comfort, security, and wealth in a country known for its amicable coexistence of various ethnicities.”

Brazil saw a 961 percent spike in antisemitic incidents during October 2023 in comparison to the same time in 2022. Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs reported that in 2024 from January through October, complaints of antisemitism rose 70 percent compared to the same period in 2023.

The Center for the Study of Contemporary European Jewry at Tel Aviv University released a report on 2024 antisemitic incidents globally, drawing from data collected by CONIB which showed 1,788 incidents in Brazil in 2024 compared to 1,410 in 2023 and 432 in 2022.

In January, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released the findings of its newest Global 100 Survey of antisemitic attitudes by country. Researchers found that about a percent of the country’s population — 41.2 million people — expressed “elevated levels of antisemitic attitudes.” These numbers rank Brazil as the 21st least antisemitic country out of 103 and third lowest in the region.

On March 10, the ADL and CONIB announced plans to partner and increase efforts to counter domestic antisemitism.

“With antisemitism and anti-Zionism on the rise worldwide, partnerships like this are key to ensuring that Jewish communities in Latin America and other regions have the tools to protect themselves,” said Marina Rosenberg, the ADL’s senior vice president for International Affairs. “By collaborating with CONIB, we are strengthening the fight against extremism in Brazil and expanding the global reach of ADL in monitoring and combating antisemitism and hatred.”

Lottenberg added that “by joining forces with such a prominent organization, our goal is to strengthen the fight against growing antisemitism in Brazil, promoting the security and well-being of the Brazilian Jewish community.”

The post-Oct. 7, 2023, surge of antisemitism in the South American state inspired the city government of Rio de Janeiro to adopt the IHRA antisemitism definition.

“The IHRA definition has proven to be the most effective tool to identify and counter antisemitism, and we encourage other governmental bodies at all levels, throughout Latin America and worldwide, to follow Rio de Janeiro’s lead and join the distinguished club that has made an impact in the collective effort against antisemitism by taking this vital step,” said Shay Salamon, director of Hispanic outreach for the Combat Antisemitism Movement.

Two Brazilian states — Goiás and São Paulo — adopted the IHRA definition in 2024.

Goiás Governor Ronaldo Caiado said at the signing ceremony that “President Lula’s statements do not represent the people of Brazil. Today we begin to rebuild the respect that he made us lose.”

The post Brazilian Jews Rebuke President Lula for ‘Antisemitic Libel’ Condemning Israel’s Fight to Defeat Hamas first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

A demonstration of the group Europe Palestine to demand the boycott of Israel, in Paris, France on May 15, 2022. Photo: Xose Bouzas / Hans Lucas via Reuters Connect

A Norwegian hotel has refused to accommodate an Israeli traveler, citing a nationwide boycott against the Jewish state launched last week by the country’s powerful trade union, the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO).

Upon receiving the request, the hotel — located in the village of Geiranger in western Norway, one of Scandinavia’s top tourist destinations — indicated it would need to consult with the trade union to determine whether hosting the Israeli traveler would be permitted under the new boycott guidelines.

“The Norwegian Labor Organization (LO) will soon enforce a boycott that will affect Israeli tourists and Israeli goods due to the catastrophic situation in Gaza,” read the response to the Israeli traveler’s booking request.

“We need to inform you that our staff is organized in LO unions, and they will not break the boycott. I will need to consult with the employers’ organization as I see this as a force majeure situation,” the hotel told the Israeli traveler.

BREAKING:
Norwegian hotels to boycott Israeli tourists.

Source: @StoppNRK
See: https://t.co/0tr55jwvFl pic.twitter.com/Mhy2pICn1n

— On Elpeleg (@onelpeleg) May 12, 2025

According to the hotel management, the organization’s boycott qualifies as a “force majeure” event, an unforeseen circumstance that prevents parties from meeting their contractual obligations and shields them from liability when exceptional situations disrupt normal expectations.

The hotel’s response was shared in a Facebook group, sparking outrage and widespread condemnation among its members.

“As a Jew who has been fighting antisemitism for 40 years, I have never experienced something so shocking. It’s like traveling back in time 85 years to 1940, to the period when Norway sent its Jews to Auschwitz,” one of the group’s members wrote in a comment.

“I am simply in shock – Norway was the last country in Europe to allow Jews to enter, and now it’s closing its doors again,” he continued.

Last week, Norway’s LO trade union voted in favor of a full economic boycott of Israel, while also urging the government to direct the Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG) to divest from Israeli companies, similar to how it mandated the divestment from Russian companies after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The GPFG, also known as the Norwegian Oil Fund, is a sovereign wealth fund owned by the Norwegian government and managed by its central bank, created to manage surplus revenue from oil and gas exports, with investments in a diverse array of global assets and companies.

Despite its close ties to the LO union, Norway’s Labour-led government said it would not push for divestment from Israeli companies, arguing that it is best to allow the fund’s ethics watchdog, the Council on Ethics, to operate in accordance with the ethical guidelines approved by parliament.

“We don’t plan to change our strategy,” Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere told Reuters on Friday after the LO vote.

“But I hope Israel is reading that this [the boycott] is an expression of a significant part of public opinion,” the Norwegian leader said.

Based on government guidelines, the GPFG follows an ethical investment strategy that includes avoiding companies involved in human rights violations, environmental harm, or other unethical practices, and has the authority to divest from such companies or sectors when necessary.

The Palestinian terrorist group Hamas praised the LO’s decision to boycott “the Zionist occupation and ban trade and investment with its companies,” calling the move “a courageous step that embodies a clear alignment with truth and justice, and advocates for the rights of the Palestinian people.”

On Sunday, the GPFG — which is one of the largest funds in the world — announced that it had divested from Israel’s Paz Oil Company, citing its ownership and operation of infrastructure that supplies fuel to “Israeli settlements in the West Bank.”

“By operating infrastructure for the supply of fuel to the Israeli settlements on the West Bank, Paz is contributing to their perpetuation,” the fund’s Council on Ethics watchdog said in its recommendation to divest. “The settlements have been established in violation of international law, and their perpetuation constitutes an ongoing violation thereof.”

This is the latest move by a European financial entity to sever ties with Israeli companies, amid growing pressure in Norway for the GPFG to fully divest from Israeli businesses following the outbreak of the Gaza war.

Overall, the Council on Ethics reviewed approximately 65 companies in the fund’s holdings across sectors such as energy supply, infrastructure, travel and tourism, and banking, but has not yet disclosed whether it made additional recommendations for divestment.

The post Norwegian Hotel Refuses Israeli Traveler Amid Boycott Against Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Yuval Raphael in the music video for her new song “New Day Will Rise.” Photo: YouTube screenshot

Organizers of the Eurovision Song Contest have agreed to have a broader discussion about Israel’s participation in the contest after receiving a formal request by Ireland’s public broadcaster, RTÉ, and following threats made to Israeli singer Yuval Raphael for competing in the competition.

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organizes the Eurovision Song Contest, has been facing growing pressure from former contestants and public broadcasters around the world to ban Israel from this year’s competition. Critics are citing opposition to Israel’s military actions in the Gaza Strip, during its war against Hamas-led terrorists from Gaza who orchestrated the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre in southern Israel. Following Monday’s release of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, Hamas is still holding 58 Israeli hostages in Gaza whom they abducted during the Oct. 7 attack.

The EBU has repeatedly insisted that despite criticism against Israel, the Israeli public broadcaster Kan meets all criteria to participate in the 2025 Eurovision contest, held this year in Basel, Switzerland. Yuval Raphael — a survivor of the Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel — will represent the Jewish state in this year’s competition.

Most recently, RTÉ Director-General Kevin Bakhurst called for the EBU to review Israel’s inclusion in the Eurovision. Bakhurst confirmed that he, along with RTÉ’s Director of Video Steve Carson, had a meeting on Friday with the EBU about the Irish broadcaster’s concerns. In response, the EBU committed to having “a wider discussion amongst members in due course” about Israel’s participation, RTE said in a released statement on Friday.

“I am appalled by the ongoing events in the Middle East and by the horrific impact on civilians in Gaza, and the fate of Israeli hostages,” Bakhurst said last week. “Notwithstanding the fact that the criterion for participating in the Eurovision Song Contest is membership of the European Broadcasting Union, RTÉ has nonetheless asked the EBU for a discussion on Israel’s inclusion in the contest. In doing this, we are mindful of RTÉ’s obligations as an independent, impartial public service news and current affairs provider, and of the need to maintain RTÉ’s objectivity in covering the war in Gaza. We are also very mindful of the severe political pressure on Israel’s public service broadcaster, Kan, from the Israeli government.”

Public broadcasters in Iceland, Slovenia, and Spain have also raised concerns about Israel’s inclusion in the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest.

On Sunday, the Israeli delegation to the Eurovision was participating in a parade in Basel for the competition when a man made a threatening hand gesture toward the delegation, including Raphael, that showed him slitting a throat, the Israeli publication Ynet reported. The man was also carrying a Palestinian flag and wore a black T-shirt that called for a boycott of Israel, as seen in footage shared by Ynet from the incident. Kan said it made a complaint to local police about the threatening gesture, and members of the Israeli delegation told Ynet the gesture was a clear indication of a threat to commit murder and should be taken seriously.

Several anti-Israel protesters attended Sunday’s parade carrying Palestinians flags, as well as signs that accused Israel of apartheid and criticized its participation in the 2025 Eurovision amid the war in Gaza. Raphael appeared in the parade waving an Israeli flag as her Eurovision song, “New Day Will Rise,” played in the background. She walked on stage during a segment of the event and was accompanied by a bodyguard who kept an eye on the crowd, as part of increased security measures for the Israeli delegation due to criticism surrounding Israel’s participation in the contest.

“New Day Will Rise” is a ballad written by singer and songwriter Keren Peles. The song is mostly in English but features some French and Hebrew lyrics. Raphael will perform the song in the second semi-final of the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest on May 15 and if she advances, she will compete in the grand final two days later on May 17.

The post Israel’s Eurovision Participation Under Scrutiny as Singer Yuval Raphael Faces Threats first appeared on Algemeiner.com.