Colombian President Calls for ‘International Army’ To Free Palestine

By Staff, Agencies

Colombian President Gustavo Petro has called for armed intervention in Palestine, emphasizing the need to build an international army to “liberate Palestine” and stand up to “tyranny and totalitarianism” propagated by the United States and NATO.

Petro made the appeal in his speech before the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, urging countries that oppose genocide to join forces as a united front and form a strong international coalition to protect the lives of the Palestinian people.

“We need a powerful army of the countries that do not accept genocide. That is why I invite nations of the world and their peoples more than anything, as an integral part of humanity, to bring together weapons and armies. We must liberate Palestine,” he said.

Petro further asserted that it is time for action rather than mere words, stressing that “they will not just bomb Gaza, not just the Caribbean as they are doing already, but all of humanity that demands freedom.”

He also expressed concern that the actions of Washington and NATO are undermining democracy and contributing to the resurgence of tyranny and totalitarianism on a global scale, emphasizing the need to raise the flag of liberty or death. 

Petro's call for armed intervention in Palestine resonated with a similar proposal by Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto, who expressed willingness to provide 20,000 soldiers for an armed force that could be deployed in Gaza.

Separately on Tuesday, Chilean President Gabriel Boric expressed his desire to see "Israeli" Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu brought before an international tribunal for genocide in the Gaza Strip, drawing parallels with cases in the Balkans and Rwanda.

"I don't want to see Netanyahu destroyed by a missile along with his family," he said during his address to the UN General Assembly in New York. "I want to see Netanyahu and those responsible for the genocide against the Palestinian people brought before an international court of justice."

Boric also condemned "Israel's" attack on Qatar and its aggression against Iran, highlighting the need for the international community to combat hate and strengthen the multilateral system. 

Regarding the situation in Gaza, he acknowledged the difficulty in finding new words to express the ongoing tragedy. 

In a poignant reflection, Boric underscored the tragic loss of innocent lives in the Palestinian crisis and drew a parallel to historical atrocities, characterizing the crisis as a global humanitarian issue. 

"Thousands of innocent human beings are losing their lives just for being Palestinians ... rather than talking about numbers, condemnations, or demands, I would like to talk about humanity today," the Chilean president said.

When children lie under the rubble, "there is a genuine pain in our country, in Chile," which has the largest Palestinian community in the world outside Arab states, he added.

In his concluding remarks, Boric stressed the intolerability of violence in any form and called for the transformation of pain and hatred into a pursuit of justice, advocating against making concessions to violence.