Chile is the country on the Southwest Pacific coast of South America, which runs from a polar south to tropical north. 5% of Chile’s population is Arab, and the majority of that is Palestinian-Christian: Chilestino/Chilestinian.
Chile is a first world country now, very democratic. The Chilestinos are prosperous and wield incredible political power.
There is no reason that our own networks ignore Latin America, and it does cost us in influence. If you think that Latin Americans do not notice who is paying attention to them, then you are mistaken.
Some of Al Jazeera’s more recent reports for South America.
Chile’s large and very influential Palestinian (mostly Christian) community has added an anti-Israel influence to a lot of Chile’s culture and politics. I do not say all Chileans have this attitude, but it is magnified by the prosperity and clout of Chile’s Palestians. This is sad.
… Chile has long been a hotbed of anti-Israel extremism due to its population of half a million Palestinians, but the situation for Jewish students on campus grows worse by the day.
Sadly, the extremism in Chile that is often manifested as harassment of the Jewish community (in particular on campuses) has been largely ignored by Israel and the global Jewish world, as it has continued to grow.
Last week Chile’s Israel hatred finally went viral, with Chile even trending on Twitter in Israel during Chile’s “apartheid week.” The impetus? A visit from Arab-Israeli activist Yoseph Haddad, who spoke on multiple campuses about the cooperation between Arabs and Jews within Israel, contrary to the extremist narrative of the Palestinian community.
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A major reason for this flare-up was a visit by Yousef Haddad, an Israeli-Arab who served in the IDF. Mr. Haddad – who says he is a Christian Arab – is a pro-Israel advocate, and the pro-Palestinian students did not appreciate his message.
Posted on YouTube: April 12, 2022
Chile is a bizarre outlier on this.
Historically, Chile has been tolerant and friendly to Jews, but the presence of half a million Palestinians in Chile has distorted the discussion.
Anti-Zionist Gabriel Boric’s presidential win leaves Chile’s Jews worried
Gabriel Boric called Israel a “murderous state” in a meeting with Chile’s Jewish community during his campaign.
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Boric has previously supported a drafted bill in Chile’s National Congress calling for a boycott of goods, services and products from Israeli settlements.
In addition, Boric called Israel a “murderous state” in a meeting with the Jewish community during his campaign and signed a statement of support to the Palestinian cause in a meeting with the president of the 350,000-strong Palestinian community of Chile.
Posted on YouTube – December 21, 2021
Chile has a very large Palestinian population (mostly Christian), and this has affected the country’s politics.
Daniel Jadue was born in Recoleta, Santiago to small business owners Magaly del Carmen Jadue Jadue and Juan Fariz Jadue Jadue. He was estranged from his father, a supporter of Augusto Pinochet, for most of his life. Jadue is the grandson of Christian Palestinian immigrants who arrived in Chile during the first half of the last century.
A Grandson of Palestinian Immigrants Could Be Chile’s Next President, and These Jews Are Worried
Daniel Jadue, who has previously accused Jews of controlling the media and refers to the Jewish community as the ‘Zionist community,’ is close to assuming Chile’s highest office. Chilean Jews explain their concerns and why some are now making aliyah
He’s a communist of Palestinian origin known for his fierce animosity to Israel and open hostility to the Jewish community – and if the latest polls are correct, Daniel Jadue could become Chile’s next president.
Chile has a small Jewish community, and they are worried. Chilean Jews are vastly outnumbered by Palestinian-Chileans (Chilestinians/Chilestinos), which are more than a mere ethnic bloc, but a wealthy, powerful elite. The Palestinians in Chile are over-represented in offices of power and industry.
In many ways their success mirrors that of Jews in America.
The Palestinian community is to Chile what the Jewish community is to the U.S.
– Gabriel Zaliasnik, then president of Chile’s Jewish Federation
That one of the Palestinian community’s members – one who is considered anti-semetic by the Jews – is so close to the presidency scares them.
As Ha’aretz notes, many Jews are considering Aliyah.
This video is from Turkish TV (TRT World) and has an Arab/Islamic bias.
Posted on YouTube: June 24, 2021
If this sounds like much ado about nothing, it isn’t.
The Simon Wisenthal Center in 2020, listed Daniel Jadue’s candidacy for the presidency as one of year’s top 10 anti-semitic incidents.
This is worrisome.
NOTE: In the end, Daniel Jadue did not win. He lost to Gabriel Boric in the left wing primaries. Boric went on to win the general election. While not as bad as Jadue, Garbriel Boric is still not considered friendly to Israel.
The picture of Daniel Jadue is from Wikipedia. I added the flag background.
June 21, 2022 – Corrected a spelling error. Added some info.
