Colombian president orders opening of embassy in Ramallah after cutting ties with Israel

BOGOTA, Colombia — Colombian President Gustavo Petro has ordered the opening of an embassy in the West Bank city of Ramallah, the South American country’s Foreign Minister Luis Gilberto Murillo tells journalists.

At the beginning of this month, Petro, who has heavily criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and requested to join South Africa’s case accusing Israel of genocide at the International Court of Justice, said he would cut diplomatic relations with Israel over its actions in Gaza amid the war against Hamas.

“President Petro has given the order that we open the Colombian embassy in Ramallah, the representation of Colombia in Ramallah, that is the next step we are going to take,” Murillo says.

Ramallah serves as the administrative capital of the Palestinian Authority, the Fatah-dominated rival of Gaza-ruling Hamas.