#antisemitismo

The conspiracy theory mentioned in this post--that the USA's invasion of Venezuela was secretly an Israeli plot--is now being backed by the VP of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez:

I tried to find a Spanish-language reference. The first I located is from ABC. This is one of Spain's three "papers of record", and is the conservative, pro-monarchy paper.

Here is another paper that has a slightly longer extract of what she said:

Rodríguez, sin embargo, se opuso a la ofensiva estadounidense y dijo que la "integridad territorial" fue "salvajemente atacada". "Es un ataque con tinte sionista", puntualizó.

Or in English:

Rodríguez, however, opposed the US offensive, saying that "territorial integrity" was "savagely attacked." "It's an attack with Zionist undertones," she emphasized.

In context, Rodríguez is accusing the US of colonialism, particularly with the extraction of Venezuelan resources. Hard to argue against that. But then, she directly compares that with Zionism--as in, "just like the Israelis, the Americans snuck into another country illegally to steal their resources and arrest innocent freedom fighters".

ICE brutality in Minneapolis: Falsely blamed on Israelis

And now?

Fires in Patagonia: Falsely blamed on Israelis

Here's noted (unprosecuted) child rapist Matt Gaetz for OAN:

There is no verified evidence that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) the Israeli government, or individual Israelis are setting fires in Patagonia.

The claims we're seeing are a combination of a decades-old conspiracy theory and a single real-world accident involving an Israeli tourist in 2011.

Plan Andinia

The most persistent source of these accusations is a conspiracy theory called Plan Andinia.

The conspiracy theory involves a secret Zionist plot to carve out a second Jewish state in the Patagonia region of Argentina and Chile.

This theory was popularized in the 1970s by neo-Nazi and ultra-nationalist groups in Argentina. It has been thoroughly debunked by historians and governments alike as an antisemitic fabrication, similar to the "Protocols of the Elders of Zion."

Because many young Israelis visit Patagonia as tourists after completing their mandatory military service, conspiracy theorists point to their presence as "undercover IDF soldiers" scouting the land.

The 2011 Torres del Paine Incident

The only factual event often used to "prove" these claims was a massive fire in 2011.

In December 2011, an Israeli backpacker named Rotem Singer accidentally started a fire in the Torres del Paine National Park in Chile while trying to burn toilet paper. The fire destroyed over 17,000 hectares.

Singer was arrested, fined, and admitted negligence. While this was a case of individual carelessness, it was seized upon by local politicians and online activists to "re-verify" the Plan Andinia conspiracy, claiming the fire was an intentional act of "ecological terrorism" by the IDF.

Recent Claims (2024–2026)

In the most recent wave of wildfires (including those in early 2026), the same narratives have resurfaced:

In January 2026, social media posts in Argentina claimed an Israeli military grenade (an M26) was found at a fire site.

Independent fact-checkers (such as Chequeado) and local provincial authorities investigated and found the device was actually an FMK-2 grenade, which is manufactured locally by the Argentine military industry (Fabricaciones Militares), not Israel.

Argentine President Javier Milei and provincial governors have publicly condemned these rumors as baseless and motivated by antisemitism.

🇦🇷🇧🇴🇵🇾🇨🇱 En América Latina, aunque existen comunidades judías notables en países como Argentina y Brasil, su presencia es mucho menor en comparación con Europa, América del Norte o el Medio Oriente. El antisemitismo en la región tiene raíces en el catolicismo tradicional, influenciado por la Inquisición y aspectos medievales del cristianismo español. Además, la extrema derecha en estos países ha adoptado la narrativa de los judíos como promotores del comunismo, combinando prejuicios religiosos con teorías ultranacionalistas que ven a los judíos como desleales. En países como Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina y Chile, algunos regímenes autoritarios ofrecieron refugio a criminales de guerra nazis y persiguieron a judíos, especialmente durante la dictadura militar en Argentina. Sin embargo, estas actitudes han sido más limitadas fuera de Argentina, y los moderados en la política latinoamericana han mantenido una imagen generalmente positiva de los judíos.

🇺🇸 In Latin America, while there are notable Jewish communities in countries such as Argentina and Brazil, their presence is much smaller compared to Europe, North America, or the Middle East. Antisemitism in the region is rooted in traditional Catholicism, influenced by the Inquisition and medieval aspects of Spanish Christianity. Additionally, the far-right in these countries has adopted the narrative of Jews as promoters of communism, blending religious prejudices with ultranationalist theories that view Jews as disloyal. In countries like Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina, and Chile, some authoritarian regimes provided refuge to Nazi war criminals and persecuted Jews, especially during Argentina’s military dictatorship. However, these attitudes have been more limited outside of Argentina, and moderates in Latin American politics have generally maintained a favorable image of Jews.