06:29 AM
The Government’s decision to bring between 35 and 50 Palestinian children to Colombia to be treated at the Military Hospital fueled criticism of President Petro for his position on the conflict in the Gaza Strip and revealed another episode of symbolic announcements that can be blurred in the practice.
In context: The Colombian government hopes to bring to the country between 35 and 50 Palestinian boys and girls, victims of the war in the Gaza Strip
Almost two weeks ago, from Sweden, the Vice Minister of Multilateral Affairs, Elizabeth Taylor Jay, made the first announcement that has evolved little by little: “Colombia, with the spirit of diplomacy for life in all its forms and attending to our policy of total peace and the humanitarian support that we have given to countries, including Palestine for everything that is happening in Gaza, has made the decision to provide humanitarian support to Palestinian children who would travel with their families to Colombia for their rehabilitation,” Taylor reported.
The prelude to the announcement was a meeting of President Gustavo Petro with 26 Colombian ambassadors in Europe on his recent visit to Sweden and Foreign Minister Luis Gilberto Murillo attending the conference “Call to action: urgent humanitarian response for Gaza” in Jordan. In the president’s meeting with the diplomats, in addition to discussing foreign policy issues, the need for the Colombian government to assume another symbolic gesture in the face of what is happening between Israel and Palestine was established. Petro had decided to break relations with Israel at the beginning of last May, which caused ambassador Gali Dagan to leave Colombia in recent days.
That is why the arrival of Palestinian boys and girls to the country deepens the support of the Colombian head of state for the Palestinian cause and strengthens his quest to be a “world leader” that is replicated every time Petro goes to international stages.
“I don’t understand why there is a protest against surviving Palestinian children injured in the genocide being treated in the military hospital. The military hospital would be filled with world glory if it cares for the child survivors of the Holocaust,” said the president on the social network that peace signers are treated in that hospital center.
It is not the first time it happens. Well, in that care center, in fact, demobilized members of armed groups have been interned and have shared space with those who were previously their adversaries in the conflict. For some, this type of gesture means an act of reconciliation and for others, an offense.
Also read: More than 1,300 dead during the Haj pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia due to intense heat
As will be?
The truth is that beyond the announcements and the humanitarian gesture, the proposal has not been fully consolidated. EL COLOMBIANO asked the Foreign Ministry, which is in charge of the process, for more details, but they responded that the only thing that is known is what Foreign Minister Luis Gilberto Murillo said a few days ago: “We are going to start quickly, we are already very advanced, a humanitarian aid plan (…) who have some type of mutilation and who are in Egypt affected by the conflict in Gaza. “They can come with their companions and family for a period of up to six months and then return to Egypt.”
But how is the Government going to bring the minors to Colombia and how much will their stay in the country cost? Will there be psychological support for the Palestinians, who will come to a land where they do not speak their language?
Questions have not yet been resolved, but Foreign Minister Murillo assured that he has already contacted his counterpart in Egypt, where the children remain, to confirm the decision and that he is “analyzing the operational aspects of the program with governments and international humanitarian organizations.” More details of the negotiations and agreements with governments and allied organizations will be announced soon.”
Meanwhile, the Minister of Defense, Iván Velásquez, when questioned in Cauca about what the care of Palestinian families would be like in the Military Hospital, said: “In this we are barely coordinating with the Foreign Ministry, which is the one that has the leadership of that project. So at this time it is still very premature to make announcements by Defense regarding the Military Hospital, because everything depends on coordination with the Foreign Ministry. (…) only by having clarity about the project that the Chancellery would lead would we be able to make the assessment of costs, possibility of attention, extension in time, etc.”
The announcements following President Petro’s proposal give the impression that before consulting the feasibility and logistical and budgetary forecast, the president launched the idea and now the Foreign Relations and Defense ministries are racing to make it a reality. The gesture can be more symbolic than anything else, given the dimension of the war, where thousands of boys and girls have been killed by bombings and those who have survived lost members of their family and the place where they lived.
What is the conflict about?
The war broke out last October when Hamas terrorists made a surprise attack on Israeli territory, killing thousands of people. In addition, another hundred people were kidnapped and today, eight months later, they remain in the hands of criminals. As revenge, Israel promised to exterminate Hamas members, who are hiding in Gaza and other places in Palestine; Hence, the bombs to attack them almost always fall in residential areas, causing the death of nearly 37,000 people, according to UN records. Israel’s offensive, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has been strongly criticized even by allies such as the United States.
Currently, Israeli troops continue their ground invasion in Rafah, southern Palestine, while bombing three refugee camps.
Read on: Netanyahu says “intense” phase of fighting against Hamas in Rafah is “about to end,” but not the war
