The request is vague as to what ceremony Bolsonaro hopes to attend, but it falls on the day that Israel declared its independence.
According to a statement from Bolsonaro’s attorneys, former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has asked federal authorities to return his passport and grant him permission to go to Israel so he may accept an invitation to attend an event in May from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
On Monday, the day The New York Times released security camera footage showing that Bolsonaro had spent two nights at Hungary’s embassy in Brasilia, the lawyers filed Bolsonaro’s motion to the Supreme Court.
His visit in February occurred just a few days after his passport was confiscated by Federal Police in the course of a raid about a possible plot by him and senior associates to conduct an uprising in order to maintain the vanquished leader’s position of power in 2022, should the election results be disregarded.
When his stay was made public, there was a lot of conjecture that he was trying to avoid being arrested because diplomatic agreements prevent agents from entering embassy premises.
Bolsonaro’s attorneys refuted this, stating in a different statement that it was “illogical” to believe he was evading law enforcement or applying for asylum.
His political goal with the Hungarian administration, with whom he has “well-known alignment,” included the stay, according to the statement.
Bolsonaro’s attorneys argued in his Supreme Court plea that Bolsonaro’s planned trip to Israel, which he has appointments after his anticipated return date, won’t compromise the continuing legal proceedings against him.
Bolsonaro’s intended attendance at the event was not made clear in the proposal, but it falls on Israel’s “Independence Day”
Bolsonaro’s attorney Fabio Wajngarten stated on X, formerly Twitter, “As is public knowledge, part of the political activity involves international relations as well as expanding dialogue with global leaders.”
The press office of the Supreme Court stated that it will review the request and that a decision is not expected any time soon.
Brazil-Israel dispute
Bolsonaro’s main international friends are Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
In contrast, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Bolsonaro’s opponent and successor, and Netanyahu in particular have not been on good terms.
The ongoing conflict on the blockaded enclave “isn’t a war, it’s a genocide,” according to Brazilian President Lula, who further likened the unprecedented attacks on Palestinian residents to “when Hitler decided to kill the Jews.”
After Lula compared Israel’s war in besieged Gaza to the Holocaust, the foreign minister of Israel declared that Lula would not be allowed to visit his country unless he apologized, calling the remarks a “very serious anti-Semitic attack.”
At least 32,552 Palestinians have lost their lives in Israel’s continuing war on Gaza, while around 75,000 have also been injured.
Acute shortages of food, potable water, and medicine have forced practically the entire Gaza population into internal displacement as a result of the Israeli conflict, and the UN estimates that at least 60% of the enclave’s infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed.
The International Court of Justice has charged Israel of genocide. This week, a prominent UN expert affirmed that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.
While most of the region has been reduced to a wasteland by the fanatical government led by warmonger Netanyahu, Israel has also placed a siege on its 2.4 million citizens, which has only been occasionally relieved by humanitarian deliveries brought about by international demonstrations.
SOURCE: TRTWORLD
