Although Jerusalem’s keeping quiet about Hugo Chavez’s death, Haaretz reports of Israeli hopes to “reboot” relations with Venezuela. For background on El Commandante’s animus towards Israel, see Israel HaYom. The JTA elaborates on Chavez’s strained relationship with Venezuela’s Jewish community.
Repairing Israeli-Venezuelan ties isn’t far-fetched. Elections are supposed to be held within 30 days; the Jewish Chronicle notes that opposition leader Henrique Capriles is the grandson of Holocaust survivors:
Mr Capriles, a Catholic whose grandparents fled Nazi Europe for South America, had reportedly pledged to re-establish ties with Israel.
For now, he is calling for unity as the country mourns the man that led it for more than 14 years. But if he did challenge Chavez’s expected successor – Vice President Nicolas Maduro – it could mark a turning point for the Jewish community of Venezuela and for the country’s relations with the US and Israel.
Before closing out on Chavez, I want to recognize The Daily Mash for this ace headline:
Source material can be found at this site.
