To protest Gaza op, Venezuela gives Israeli diplomats 72 hours to leave

Venezuela expelled Israel's ambassador in Caracas on Tuesday to protest the offensive in Gaza. The move came just hours after President Hugo Chavez called the attacks a "holocaust."

Israel's ambassador to Venezuela, Shlomo Cohen, and his staff were given 72 hours to leave the country.

The move has raised concerns in the Foreign Ministry over the future of Venezuela's 15,000 strong Jewish community.

Since Chavez rose to power in Venezuela, there has never been any officially sanctioned anti-Jewish activity. However the virulent anti-western and at times anti-Semitic rhetoric of the Venezuelan president, as well as his alliance with Iran, have been the cause of concern for the Jewish community there.

On Tuesday night, Ambassador Cohen received a telephone call from the Foreign Ministry informing him that an official letter was on its way, declaring him and the other six members of the diplomatic mission in Caracas persona non grata and requiring them to depart the country within three days.

Following this development, a special crew flew to Venezuela to assist in evacuating the embassy and its classified documents and equipment.

A large anti-Israel protest is scheduled to take place in front of the embassy in Caracas today, and there are concerns that the demonstration may become violent and result in an attack on the embassy building.

In recent years, Chavez has frequently withdrawn Venezuela's diplomatic envoys amid bilateral disputes. Last year, he kicked out the U.S. ambassador.

Venezuela issued a statement calling Israel's operation in the Gaza Strip a "flagrant violation of International Law" and "state terrorism."

"For the reasons mentioned above, the government of Venezuela has decided to expel the ambassador of Israel and part of the personnel of the Embassy of Israel," the statement read.

In 2006, Chavez threatened to break ties with Israel over the Second Lebanon War. On Monday he accused Washington of poisoning the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to destabilize the Middle East and justify U.S.-backed Israeli incursions into Arab countries.

"The Holocaust, that is what is happening right now in Gaza," Chavez said in televised comments on Tuesday. "The president of Israel at this moment should be taken to the International Criminal Court together with the President of the United States."

For its part, Israel is considering expelling Venezuelan diplomats from Israel, the Foreign Ministry said yesterday. Venezuela does not have an ambassador in Israel - only a diplomatic staff of two.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Yigal Palmor said that the letter expelling the ambassador and the diplomatic staff in Caracas made no reference to severing diplomatic relations with Israel.

Hamas, meanwhile, expressed its appreciation yesterday for the move and taunted other Arab countries for maintaining their relations with Israel.

"As we look with great satisfaction at this courageous step, we are surprised and deplore that some Arab countries still allow the Israeli ambassador to remain in their capitals," the group said in a statement.