Argentinian President Javier Milei’s visit to Israel was widely covered in Arabic-speaking outlets on Wednesday. Many reported that he arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport aboard an El Al airplane, and commentators denounced his pledge to move his country’s embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
“We strongly condemn and denounce the announcement by the president of Argentina of his intention to transfer his country’s embassy to the Nazi-Zionist entity to occupied Jerusalem, and we consider it an infringement on the rights of our Palestinian people to their land, and a violation of the rules of international law considering Jerusalem an occupied Palestinian land,” Hamas said in a statement.
The terrorist group also called on Milei to “rescind this unjust and wrong decision, which places Argentina as a partner to the Zionist occupier.”
No comment from the Palestinian Authority
The Palestinian Authority had not yet commented.
In a short post on social media, Fatah spokesman Abed Al-Fatah Dolah said Milei’s plan to move the embassy was “an assault on international law and resolutions of international legitimacy, and a denial of the rights of the Palestinian people to sovereignty and the status that Jerusalem constitutes as the capital of a state Palestine.”
Many social-media posts referred to Milei’s fondness of Judaism and showed pictures of him with a kippah. Others emphasized Milei’s alleged complicity with Israel’s wrongdoings. London-based newspaper Rai Alyoum, which is owned by Palestinian-British Hamas sympathizer Abdel Bari Atwan, said the move came on the grounds of “support of Israel’s crimes.”
Some commentators referred to the historical Jewish colonies set up in Argentina starting in the late 1890s, sometimes having historical inaccuracies. One Algerian commenter wrote: “Argentina is a good and suitable alternative homeland for the Jewish Zionists, given that their cause was created there at its beginnings by Theodor Herzl.”
Likewise, former Algerian cabinet minister Azzedine Mihoubi wrote in a post: “Amazing! The populist president of Argentina found no country in the world worthy of his first visit other than an outcast, racist, terrorist entity accused of committing genocide in Gaza!… He had not heard of China, Japan, or South Africa, and chose a monster entity to announce that it would move its embassy to Jerusalem! No wonder... even Argentina was a candidate to become Israel!”
Several comments included wild conspiracy theories. One commentator said: “The Jews are preparing many people like this lunatic to gain power in many countries of the world.”
Another one from Egypt wrote: “When we said that the president of Argentina was Israel’s candidate, people were upset with us. Israel still has rulers on all continents who are subordinate to it and America… Some of them plot against Arabs and Muslims by moving the Argentine embassy to occupied Jerusalem... Israel is [a] cancer and there is no solution for them other than a surgical solution [amputation].”Some users were more enthusiastic, calling to mobilize Arabs against Argentina.
An Algerian blogger wrote: “If [Arab] normalizers transfer everything to Israel, why should we blame the president of Argentina for moving his country’s embassy to Jerusalem?”
A Yemeni blogger called on Arab and Islamic nations to protest against Argentinian embassies and call for their expulsion.
A Qatari blogger pondered if there would now be Arab calls for boycotting Argentina.
An Egyptian blogger uploaded a picture showing people lighting an Argentinian flag on fire.
The move was also met with instances of parody and irony. A parody account targeting PA President Mahmoud Abbas uploaded a photo of famed Argentinian soccer player Lionel Messi and said: “Argentina will move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem… Cursed be anyone who supports Argentina or Messi! You should be fans of [National Security Minister Itamar] Ben-Gvir, it’s better for you guys.”
A Jordanian blogger wrote: “In response to the Argentinian president’s moving his country’s embassy to Jerusalem: Cristiano Ronaldo is better than Messi!”