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Original article: Embajada de Chile en Israel: Cuando la limpieza étnica es normalizada como «hermandad»

By Xavier Abu Eid, Political Scientist

A diplomatic mission embodies its country’s foreign policy. In the case of Tel Aviv, the Chilean government’s approach seems to openly normalize the Zionist narrative and the dispossession of the Palestinian people.

The political decision by José Antonio Kast to appoint a staunch advocate of conservative Zionism to this diplomatic mission underscores a desire to reshape Chile’s policy in the region.

Since Gabriel Zaliasnik’s arrival, he and the embassy team have seized every opportunity to normalize elements that are challenging to understand from a normative standpoint.

The Chilean government’s efforts to signal rapprochement with Israel occur against the backdrop of the most radical Israeli government in history. There is broad consensus among legal experts and international human rights organizations regarding the commission of genocide in Gaza, where Israel still denies entry to foreign press and enforces a regime characterized by human rights organizations as apartheid across the rest of Palestine.

Israel has also failed to implement any of the United Nations resolutions regarding the Palestinian issue, the attacks on southern Lebanon, and its occupation of Syrian territory. In light of this reality, Chile remains silent, even as many of its allies, including right-leaning governments in Europe, voice their concerns.

The Chilean Embassy in Israel demonstrates that Chile’s stance is not even neutral; it actively seeks to normalize the narrative and annexationist policies of the State of Israel.

On August 20, the anniversary of Bernardo O’Higgins’ birth, the embassy further exemplified this by posting an image on Instagram stating: «In Israel, his legacy is also honored: The O’Higgins Esplanade in the Eshtaol Forest celebrates the friendship and brotherhood between our peoples.»

It also included the slogan: «two nations, one history of values that unite us,» accompanied by the location «Jerusalem, Israel.»

The so-called «Eshtaol Forest» was part of the efforts by the Jewish National Fund and the State of Israel to cover up the destruction of hundreds of Palestinian villages during the Nakba. In that area, starting with the Deir Yassin massacre in April 1948, numerous Palestinian localities were destroyed and depopulated.

Therefore, the «O’Higgins Esplanade,» far from being a «message of fraternity,» is part of a landscape of ethnic cleansing in Palestine. The Jewish National Fund has been one of the primary organizations funding the illegal colonization activities in the West Bank.

In the Eshtaol Forest area, the Palestinian villages of Ishwa, Islin, Beit Mahsir, and Beit Susin were located.

When Israel entered the United Nations through resolution 273 of 1949, it made commitments regarding the relevant resolutions on Palestine, including resolution 194 concerning Palestinian refugees. Initiatives aimed at covering the traces of destroyed localities contradict this historical context.

This is not the first time the Chilean diplomatic mission in Israel has referred to Jerusalem as part of the country, despite Security Council resolution 478 establishing the obligation of states not to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the city.

The area of the Eshtaol Forest never formed part of Jerusalem; it consisted of territories unilaterally incorporated after 1967. However, for Chile’s mission in Tel Aviv, this was a new opportunity to attempt to normalize Israel’s illegal annexation of the city.

Is the subject of Jerusalem, one of the most significant issues in the region, one that Chile wishes to discuss from a Zionist perspective? What will the next step be?

The assertion that there are «two nations, a history of values that unite us» also overlooks what this park represents for the Palestinian people, for the refugees of those villages, and even for the narrative and reality of Palestinian citizens in Israel, along with the legal provisions that organizations like Adalah, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch have identified as discriminatory, including restrictions related to the commemoration of the Nakba, which recalls the expulsion and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in 1948.

In presenting his credentials, Ambassador Zaliasnik declared in front of the cameras as a «proud Zionist,» among other expressions that reflect an explicit identification with the political narrative of the State of Israel. The Chilean Foreign Ministry apparently did not see it necessary to correct its representative regarding the boundaries of his political activism.

This is now reflected in using the anniversary of Bernardo O’Higgins to present a message that could very well be from the propaganda of the Jewish National Fund rather than a Chilean embassy.

The Palestinian community in Chile, one of the largest outside the Arab world and clearly not recognized by the Chilean government, is well aware of the consequences of these policies. The unilateral expansion of Jerusalem and the enforcement of the so-called «absentee law,» used to expropriate Palestinian properties, has also affected Chileans of Palestinian origin.

Thus, it is worth asking what the «values that unite us» are between the government of Israel and the government of Chile. The occupation of Palestine, impunity for attacks against Palestinian civilians, discriminatory legal provisions, and genocide in Gaza describe a reality wherein discussing a «union of values» implies deciding which policies one is willing to normalize.

In a single social media post, Chile ignored its obligations under relevant United Nations resolutions and the crimes committed against the Palestinian people.

This is another factor Chile should consider when evaluating the consequences of the messages it conveys through its foreign policy.

Xavier Abu Eid is a political scientist with master’s degrees in diplomacy and mediation in peace processes. He holds a Ph.D. in Religion, Theology, and Peace Studies from Trinity College Dublin. He was an advisor for the Palestinian negotiating team during the peace process with Israel.

La entrada Chilean Embassy in Israel: Normalizing Ethnic Cleansing as «Brotherhood» se publicó primero en El Ciudadano.