Palestinian group Hamas calls decision an ‘infringement on Palestinian rights, to their land, and eternal capital'
The Palestinian group Hamas strongly condemned on Friday Paraguay's decision to relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
On Thursday, Israel's Foreign Ministry announced the official relocation of the Paraguayan Embassy to Jerusalem.
“We strongly denounce Paraguayan President Santiago Pena's decision to move his country's embassy to occupied Jerusalem,” said Hamas in a statement.
Hamas said the move is "an infringement on the rights of the Palestinian people to their land and eternal capital" and a violation of international law and UN resolutions, which recognize Jerusalem as occupied Palestinian territory.
Paraguay had initially opened its embassy in Jerusalem in May 2017 but later reversed the decision in September 2018, moving the embassy back to Tel Aviv under former Foreign Minister Luis Alberto Castiglioni to support efforts for a just and lasting peace in the Middle East.
Hamas urged Paraguay to reverse the decision, align itself with principles of justice and international law, and support the oppressed Palestinian people.
The movement also accused Israel of attempting to erase the Palestinian national identity by “committing acts of genocide, Judaizing Palestinian land and its sacred capital, Jerusalem, and targeting Al-Aqsa Mosque, the first qibla of Muslims.”
Israel has launched a genocidal war on the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 44,800 victims, mostly women and children, since an attack by the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, on Oct. 7, 2023.
The second year of genocide in Gaza has drawn growing international condemnation, with officials and institutions labeling the attacks and the blocking of aid deliveries as a deliberate attempt to destroy a population.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last month for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense chief Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on Gaza.
