How has Israel's war on Gaza impacted its ties with Latin America?

Israel's war on Gaza has tested its ties with some Latin American countries, with Bolivia announcing it was breaking off diplomatic relations on Tuesday.

Two other countries in the region also run by leftist leaders, Chile and Colombia, recalled their ambassadors to Israel on the same day, in protest of what they described as Israeli abuses against the civilian Palestinian population in Gaza.

All three Spanish-speaking nations called for a ceasefire, with Bolivia and Chile pushing for the passage of humanitarian aid into the besieged enclave and accusing Israel of violating international law.

Israel's foreign ministry said in a statement that Bolivia's decision to break off relations was a "surrender to terrorism and to the Ayatollah's regime in Iran", adding that the Latin American government was also aligning itself with Hamas.

"Israel condemns Bolivia's support of terrorism and its submission to the Iranian regime, which attest to the values the government of Bolivia represents," the statement added.

But it also sought to play down the move, saying: "In any case, since the change of government in Bolivia, relations between the countries have been devoid of content."

The war in Gaza has become an important issue for the political bases of several strongly left- and right-wing politicians in Latin America, and for the polarised media that caters to those groups.

However, there does not appear to be any movement towards a unified position in the region.

Other countries, such as regional powerhouses Brazil and Mexico, have called for a ceasefire.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has also used forceful words, saying on Friday: "What we have now is the insanity of Israel's prime minister [Benjamin Netanyahu], who wants to wipe out the Gaza Strip."

On 25 October, the Agência Brasil state news agency reported Lula stating that the Middle East was witnessing a genocide, a term used by many Palestinians to describe the situation in Gaza.

"It's not a war, it's a genocide," he said.

Lula did not name either Israel or any Palestinian militant group in the comments quoted by Agência Brasil but said almost 2,000 children had been killed, although this figure has since risen to 3,826.

"Frankly, I don't know how a human being is capable of war knowing that the result of that war is the death of innocent children," Lula added.

The Brazilian leader said: "What is currently happening in the Middle East is serious, and it's not a question of discussing who is right or who is wrong, who fired the first shot and who fired the second."

Bolivia's decision to cut ties with Israel comes several years after it had restored relations.

President Luis Arce's one-time political mentor, former leader Evo Morales, severed relations with Israel in 2009, citing Israel's behaviour in a previous war on Gaza.

Those ties were restored in 2020 under the administration of conservative interim President Jeanine Anez.

Israel's military campaign in Gaza has so far killed more than 9,200 people in the besieged Palestinian enclave.

Israel has occupied Palestinian territory, including Gaza, since 1967 and has carried out several deadly assaults on the strip.

The current war in Gaza began on 7 October, when Hamas and other Palestinian militants carried out an attack inside Israeli territory, killing over 1,400 people.

Reuters contributed to this story.