Israeli humanitarian response defies diplomatic gap with earthquake-stricken Venezuela

Israel is preparing to send aid delegations to Venezuela following the country’s devastating earthquakes on Wednesday night. 

Despite Venezuela having severed diplomatic relations in 2009, Israel's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday it was “evaluating the possibilities of providing assistance to the Venezuelan people.”

That assessment spans both government and civil society organizations, with IsraAID saying it expects to deploy to Venezuela “as soon as possible,” the organization told ALL ISRAEL NEWS.

With 25 years of experience responding to global emergencies, IsraAID has been working with Venezuelan communities in neighboring Colombia since 2019, though they said this will be their first response inside Venezuela.

“We combine Israeli expertise in areas like emergency psychosocial support and safe water with our international humanitarian experience,” they explained.

“We expect our initial response to focus on mental health and psychological first aid, water, sanitation and hygiene, and a rapid needs assessment to shape the next stage of this mission,” IsraAID added.

Another Israeli nonprofit, NATAN Worldwide Disaster Relief, told The Times of Israel that it was sending an emergency team to Venezuela consisting of six to eight professional volunteers, including medical and social workers.

This is not the first time Israel has provided assistance to Latin America after a major disaster. 

Following two of the worst earthquakes in Mexico’s history in 1985 and 2017, the IDF Home Front Command deployed search-and-rescue teams. Both IsraAID and ZAKA, a volunteer organization that works to identify disaster victims, also participated in the response efforts.

The Venezuelan government has maintained close ties with Iran and a hostile stance toward Israel. Following the U.S. capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, his then-vice president and now acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, claimed the capture had “Zionist undertones.”

Rodríguez declared a state of emergency after the 7.5 and 7.2 magnitude earthquakes. Figures remain unconfirmed, but reports indicate that 235 people have died, 4,300 have been injured, and 40,000 are missing as of Friday morning. No Israelis are believed to be among the casualties.

“The State of Israel expresses its deepest condolences to the people of Venezuela for the devastating earthquakes that have affected the country,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar wrote in a post on 𝕏 in Spanish.

“Our hearts are with the families who have lost their loved ones and all those affected by the tragedy,” he added.

Israel has often provided or offered humanitarian assistance across diplomatic divides.