Gustavo Petro, the anti-Israel president of Colombia, officially left office Friday as his term expired. The city of Medellín celebrated his departure with a fireworks display. Argentine President Javier Milei landed in Colombia for the inauguration of President-elect Abelardo de la Espriella, who has pledged to restore full diplomatic ties with Israel and move the embassy to Jerusalem. De la Espriella's ascent marks a definitive end to the diplomatic freeze imposed by Petro.
Colombia's political landscape shifted definitively on Friday as Gustavo Petro, a staunch critic of Israel, exited the presidency. The term expired at noon local time, according to Abu Ali Express. In Medellín, residents held a fireworks display to mark the departure. Argentine President Javier Milei, a vocal supporter of Israel, arrived in Bogotá to attend the inauguration of President-elect Abelardo de la Espriella.
As The Zioneer has reported, de la Espriella won the June election on a platform that included a full restoration of diplomatic relations with Israel. He has since pledged to close the Palestinian embassy in Bogotá, withdraw from the ICC case against Israel, and move the Colombian embassy to Jerusalem. The new president takes office immediately upon Petro's departure.
The transition ends a period during which Colombia became one of the most vocal adversaries of Israel in Latin America. Petro severed formal ties, compared Israeli operations to Nazi actions, and hosted Palestinian diplomats. De la Espriella's administration is expected to renew security and intelligence cooperation that was frozen under Petro.
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