The Bolivian government said on Tuesday that it was severing ties with israel because of its "aggressive and disproportionate" use of force against the Palestinian people, whom it accused of being victims of "crimes against humanity".

"Bolivia decided to break diplomatic relations with the state of Israel in repudiation and condemnation of the aggressive and disproportionate israeli military offensive taking place in the Gaza Strip," said Freddy Mamani, Bolivia's deputy foreign minister, at a news conference.

He added that Bolivia would also withdraw its ambassador from Tel Aviv and expel the israeli envoy from La Paz.

The decision was welcomed by the Hamas Movement, which controls the Gaza Strip and has been engaged in a fierce conflict with israel since early October.

"We highly value the courageous stance of the Bolivian government, which decided to sever its diplomatic relations with the Zionist occupation entity in light of its fascist aggression, crimes and heinous massacres against our people in the Gaza Strip," Hamas said in a statement.

It also called on other Arab and Islamic countries that have ties with zionist regime to follow Bolivia's example and end their relations with the "occupation state" over its war crimes in Gaza.

Bolivia's move came after its president, Luis Arce, expressed his solidarity with the Palestinian cause on X, formerly Twitter, a social media platform that has been banned by several countries for spreading misinformation and inciting violence.

"If Israel does not stop the massacre of the Palestinian people, we cannot remain there," Arce wrote on X. (ILKHA)