Petro described the Israeli government’s handling of the Gaza war as “genocidal” and said countries cannot be passive in the face of the crisis unfolding in Gaza.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced Wednesday that his country will break diplomatic relations with Israel effective Thursday over its war in the Gaza Strip, which human rights advocates and other experts have warned could amount to genocide.

Speaking at a rally marking International Workers’ Day in the capital Bogota, Petro described the Israeli government’s handling of the Gaza war as “genocidal” and said countries cannot be passive in the face of the crisis unfolding in Gaza.

“Tomorrow, diplomatic relations with the State of Israel will be broken … for having a president who is genocidal,” he said on Wednesday. “If Palestine dies, humanity dies, and we are not going to let it die.”

Petro, a left-wing leader who came to power in 2022, has been one of Latin America’s most vocal critics of Israel since the start of the Gaza war. He previously suspended purchases of weapons from Israel and compared that country’s actions in Gaza to those of Nazi Germany.

Israel launched its assault in Gaza following Hamas’ October 7 attacks that killed more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and saw more than 250 others taken hostage – many of whom remain in captivity today.

Now nearing its eighth month, the Palestinian health ministry says Israel’s military offensive in the isolated enclave has killed more than 34,500 people, mostly women and children.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz quickly condemned Petro’s announcement and accused the Colombian leader of rewarding Hamas, which controls Gaza, saying he was siding with the “most despicable monsters known to humanity.”

“History will remember that Gustavo Petro decided to side with the most despicable monsters known to mankind who burned babies, murdered children, raped women, and kidnapped innocent civilians,” Katz wrote on X.

He also called Petro a “hate-filled, antisemitic president,” but said relations between both countries would remain warm despite the president’s actions. “The state of Israel will continue to defend its citizens without worry and without fear,” he added.

Hamas “highly appreciated” Petro’s position, saying in a statement that it considered his country’s decision “a victory for the sacrifices of our people and their just cause” and calling on other countries to follow suit.

Historically, Colombia had been one of Israel’s closest partners in Latin America. But relations between the two countries have cooled since Petro was elected as Colombia’s first leftist president in 2022.

Colombia uses Israeli-built warplanes and machine guns to fight drug cartels and rebel groups, and both countries signed a free trade agreement in 2020.

South Africa has previously accused Israel of violating international laws on genocide, telling the International Court of Justice that the Israeli government was “intent on destroying the Palestinians in Gaza” – a case that Israel dismissed as “absurd blood libel.”

The top UN court later ordered Israel to “take all measures” to prevent genocide but stopped short of ordering its government to halt the war.

Colombia’s regional neighbour Bolivia also severed diplomatic ties with Israel last year, citing “crimes against humanity committed against the Palestinian people” in the wake of Israel’s war with Hamas.