News - Middle East: Colombian President Gustavo Petro has denounced Israel over “genocide” in Gaza, and announced that Bogota will suspend all arms purchases from the Tel Aviv regime after more than 100 people were killed while waiting to receive emergency food assistance in northern Gaza.

"Asking for food, 100 Palestinians were murdered by [Israeli prime minister Benjamin] Netanyahu. This is called genocide and it reminds of the Holocaust; even though world powers have a hard time recognizing it,” Petro wrote in a post published on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, on Thursday.

"The world must block Netanyahu," he said, adding, "Colombia is suspending all arms purchases from Israel."

Colombia is among the 130 nations that have acquired weaponry, drones, and cyber espionage technology from Israel, which ranks as the world's tenth-largest arms exporter.

The South American country’s military and police have for decades used Israeli-manufactured rifles, pistols and missiles.

Its air force operates some 20 Kfir multirole combat aircraft, and the country produces Galil automatic rifles and Spike missiles under Israeli patent.

Colombia was among the first countries to condemn Israel’s military onslaught against Gaza. Petro has been a critic of the regime’s ground and aerial offensives against Palestinians in the coastal territory.

In October, just days after the start of the Gaza war, Israel said it was “halting security exports” to Colombia after Petro lambasted Israeli minister for military affairs Yoav Gallant for using language about the people of Gaza similar to what the Nazis did.

Colombia’s president has also emphasized that “democratic peoples cannot allow Nazism to reestablish itself in international politics.”

Source: Press TV