After a long period of tension between Brazil and Israel, the candidate who led in the first round of presidential elections is promising a change of direction. Flavio Bolsonaro, son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, has declared that if elected he will appoint a new ambassador to Israel and even move Brazil’s embassy to Jerusalem. Two months ago, Channel 14’s Libby Alon interviewed Bolsonaro in an exclusive conversation in Buenos Aires.
Bolsonaro visited Israel earlier this year, went to the Western Wall, and in the days before the election pledged to representatives of Brazil’s Jewish community that if elected, he would return to visit Israel early in his term.
After the October 7 massacre, Bolsonaro quoted former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir to defend Israel’s legitimacy: “If Hamas lays down its weapons, the war will end; if Israel lays down its weapons, the State of Israel will cease to exist.”
In that same speech, he heaped praise on the Jewish state: “Those who have been to Jerusalem, as I had the privilege to be, feel the excitement, the living history, the Bible open before your eyes. Those who visited the Knesset and saw that even there serve parliament members who oppose the State of Israel—understand that this is a people and a state that not only talk about tolerance, but also set an example and implement it in practice.”
Bolsonaro received about 47% of the vote in the first round, compared to about 45% for incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Since neither crossed the 50% threshold, the two will face off again in a second round to be held on October 25. All we can do now is keep our fingers crossed.