Buenos Aires. Amid mounting international scrutiny and a wave of European sanctions targeting Israeli residents of Judea and Samaria, one of Israel’s prominent settler leaders took his campaign across the Atlantic this week in a bid to secure unlikely allies.
Yisrael Ganz, head of both the Yesha Council, the umbrella organization representing over 500,000 Israeli residents in the region, and the Binyamin Regional Council, concluded a multi-nation diplomatic tour across Latin America. Traveling through Argentina, Guatemala, and Mexico alongside Eliana Passentin, head of Binyamin’s foreign desk, Ganz sought to bypass traditional European diplomatic channels in favor of engagement with sympathetic foreign governments and regional Jewish leaders.
Direct Appeal to Milei at Casa Rosada
The centerpiece of the tour unfolded in Buenos Aires, where Argentine President Javier Milei hosted Ganz for an hour-long discussion at Casa Rosada. Facilitated by Rabbi Richard Kaufman, a personal friend of the president, the meeting marked the third interaction between the two men, but their first structured dialogue inside Argentina’s presidential seat.
Since taking office, Milei has established himself as one of Israel’s most vocal and ideological supporters on the world stage. Ganz sought to leverage that goodwill, urging the Argentine leader to publicly reject foreign sanctions levied on Judea and Samaria communities and consider formal recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the region.
In a move tailored to Argentine political sensitivities, Ganz drew a sharp parallel between the territorial controversy over the Falkland Islands, known across Argentina as the Malvinas, and the punitive measures leveled against Israeli communities by London.
“Britain must be returned to its natural size; the days of the colonial White Paper are over,” Ganz said, evoking the 1939 British mandate policy that severely restricted Jewish immigration to pre-state Israel. “European powers cannot continue to impose their will on other nations. Britain should relinquish its hold over the Malvinas and lift its disgraceful sanctions against Judea and Samaria.”
Following the meeting, Milei shared photos of their discussion to his millions of social media followers. Stepping outside Casa Rosada, Ganz told reporters: “The Jewish people are not foreigners in Binyamin, Judea, or Samaria. This is our ancestral land, and no foreign sanction can sever that connection.”
Iranian Shadow and AMIA Memorial
Beyond the executive branch, Ganz conferred with four members of the Argentine Congress, arguing that Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria serve as a strategic security barrier along Israel’s eastern frontier.
The delegation also paid an emotional visit to the rebuilt AMIA Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, which was leveled in a 1994 bombing that killed 85 people, an attack widely attributed by international intelligence to Iran and Hezbollah. Accompanied by AMIA President Osvaldo Armoza, Ganz announced plans to erect a memorial in Binyamin dedicated to the victims of the attack, with organizers looking into incorporating two stone fragments preserved from the original destroyed building.
“Thirty-two years ago, Iranian terrorism took 85 lives here,” Ganz said after lighting a memorial candle. “The threat that struck Buenos Aires is the exact same network threatening Israel’s survival today. Iran and its proxies must be stopped before they strike again.”
The mission wrapped up with political meetings in Guatemala and a Shabbat visit with Mexico’s Jewish community, where Ganz pitched regional development initiatives, including a specialized medical facility and local agricultural ventures.
“Where others threaten boycotts, we intend to open doors,” Ganz said. “And where others push sanctions, we will forge direct partnerships.”
Written in collaboration with Binyamin Regional