Nicaragua breaks diplomatic ties with 'fascist' Israel amid Gaza, Lebanon war

Nicaragua is breaking off diplomatic relations with Israel, the Central American nation said on Friday, calling the Israeli government "fascist" and "genocidal".

Nicaragua's government, in a statement, said the break in relations was due to Israel's attacks on Gaza and Lebanon.

The nation's congress had, earlier in the day, passed a resolution requesting Nicaragua take action to coincide with the one-year anniversary of the Gaza war, which has killed at least 42,175 people as of Saturday.

The conflict, the Nicaraguan government said, now also "extends against Lebanon and gravely threatens Syria, Yemen and Iran".

Israel has been waging an indiscriminate assault on the Gaza Strip since October 7 last year, and continues to occupy the West Bank, subjecting Palestinians to violence and detention on a daily basis.

Israel has also stepped up its attacks on Lebanon since late September, before carrying out a invasion of the country's south on October 1. Around 2,000 people have been killed in Lebanon since Israel escalated its attacks.

In March this year, Nicaragua filed a case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Germany for giving financial and military aid to Israel and for defunding the UN Palestinian refugee agency, UNRWA.

The Central American nation asked the court to issue emergency measures requiring Berlin to stop its military aid to Israel and reverse its decision to stop funding UNRWA.

The country is among many in Latin America to express support for Palestine. Brazilian president Lula has slammed Israel numerous times for carrying out massacres on the Palestinian people, calling Israel's actions as genocide.

In September, Chile requested to join South Africa's genocide case against Israel at the ICJ. President Gabriel Boric has criticised the Israeli military's use of "indiscriminate and disproportional" force in its brutal offensive in Gaza.