Lula da Silva, president of Brazil, has accused Israel of killing innocent people without justification in the ongoing war with Hamas, the Palestinian militant group.
Da Silva’s comments come as Israel continues to bombard Gaza in a bid to fulfill its vow of annihilating Hamas after the militant group launched an unprecedented attack on the Jewish nation on October 7.
So far, the Palestinian death toll in Gaza has risen to more than 11,200, including women and children killed by Israeli strikes, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
Israeli authorities pegged the official death toll from Hamas’ attacks at over 1,200.
Speaking on Monday, Brazil’s president said Israel’s response to the militant group’s attacks are equally as atrocious.
“After the act of terrorism provoked by Hamas, the consequences, the solution of the state of Israel, is as grave as that of Hamas. They are killing innocent people without any criteria,” da Silva said.
The leader of Latin America’s largest country also accused Israel of “dropping bombs where there are children, hospitals, on the pretext that a terrorist is there”.
“This is inexplicable. First you have to save the women and children, then you fight with whomever you want,” da Silva added.
However, representatives of Brazil’s Jewish community denounced the president’s remarks as “erroneous,” “unfair” and “dangerous,” adding that they “put Israel and Hamas on the same level”.