Ecuadoran  President Rafael Correa decided to cancel his visit to Israel, where he had planned meetings with government officials including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a sign of protest against the atrocities being committed by Israeli forces against the people of Gaza, official sources reported Wednesday.

Correa accused the government of Netanyahu of "genocide,"  during a radio interview. He referred to the fact that the Israeli Defense Forces killed over 1,880 Palestinians in less than a month, most of which were civilians, including over 430 children and more than 200 women. The disproportionate Israeli attacks on Gaza also left over 9,300 people injured and destroyed over 10,000 homes.

We must continue dennouncing the Israeli genocide against Gazans, Correa said.

"Ecuador was the first South American country to withdraw its ambassador from Israel and we must continue denouncing this genocide," the president said. "We have obviously canceled our trip after these events." 

From the first days of the hostilities against the Palestinian people, both Correa and Ecuador's Foreign Minister Ricardo Patiño expressed their condemnation of these events and called to seek peace.

Two days ago, Patiño announced that Quito will open an embassy in Palestine, for which a diplomatic delegation is already in Ramallah. 

Meanwhile, delegations from Palestine and Israel held separate meetings with Egyptian officials in Cairo on Wednesday, as the 72-hour cease-fire in the Gaza Strip enters its second day.

Reports on the ground indicate that the Israeli delegation is expected to give an initial response to Palestinian demands later today.