Last August, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Colombian President Ivan Duque held a joint videoconference to launch a new free trade agreement between their countries.
The corresponding media release from Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted that the agreement would “create opportunities for the Israeli economy in various fields including agriculture, technology and medicine”.
Duque also committed to opening an “innovation office” in occupied Jerusalem, which was apparently Colombia’s interim solution for kissing the Israeli rear end without irreparably defying Palestinians and international law by suddenly moving the Colombian embassy to Israel’s self-appointed capital.
The media release quoted Netanyahu as enthusing that the “platform of cooperation” between Israel and Colombia would “bring our partnership, our friendship, our brotherhood … to new political and economic levels”. The prime minister went on to applaud his counterpart: “Ivan, your leadership in the fight against terrorism sets an example for the rest of Latin America.”
Of course, given that Netanyahu’s version of fighting terrorism includes things like slaughtering Palestinians left and right, it’s not difficult to guess at what Duque’s “counterterrorism” credentials might entail. Since the right-wing leader took power in 2018, a surge in massacres has taken place in Colombia - many implicating the government. READ MORE AT MIDDLE EAST EYE.