Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro

Bogota, August 19 (RHC)--  Colombia has officially approved a ban on coal exports to Israel as punishment for its ten-month-long genocidal war against the Palestinians in Gaza.  Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro said in his statement on Sunday: "Colombian coal is used to manufacture bombs that kill Palestinian children."

Thus, “exports to… Israel of thermal coal” are prohibited, according to the decree, which was signed by several ministers, including Foreign Minister Luis Gilberto Murillo, on August 14th and will enter into force next week.

Colombia was one of Israel’s largest coal suppliers.

Petro also announced the severing of diplomatic relations with Israel and cut off arms purchases from Israel earlier in the year.  Colombia also joined the genocide case against Israel brought forth by South Africa in the International Court of Justice.

The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas expressed appreciation to President Petro for reaffirming his country’s decision to prohibit the export of coal to Israel.  “We express our gratitude for the brave stance of the Republic of Colombia in ending diplomatic relations with the Zionist entity, in condemnation of the genocide that the Zionist occupation is committing against our people in the Gaza Strip,” Hamas said in a statement issued on Sunday night.

“We call on all countries to sever their relations with this fascist entity, to work by all means to boycott, isolate, and impose sanctions on it, and to prosecute its leaders as war criminals in international courts,” it added.

According to the Colombian government, the export ban will enter into force five days after the decree was published in the official gazette.

On May 1st, the Colombian head of state said the country had decided to cut its diplomatic relations with the Israeli regime over the war of aggression.