The headquarters of the World Zionist Organization (WZO) in Tel Aviv. Photo: Screenshot.

The World Zionist Organization (WZO) on Friday opened a three-day conference in Santiago, the capital of Chile, on the topic of confronting antisemitism in Latin America.

Convened by WZO vice-chair Yaakov Hagoel, the conference will involve 150 Jewish professionals from around the region who will receive briefings from “high-level experts in the field to deal with the growing phenomenon,” the Spanish-language Jewish news outlet Diario Judio reported.

In an interview with the Argentine-Jewish newspaper Iton Gadol prior to the conference, Hagoel said he had encountered many Jews in Latin American countries who “sometimes find symbols and characteristics that at first glance seem completely harmless, but behind them there are clear antisemitic insinuations, hidden images, legends or combinations of these.”

Continued Hagoel: “I think it is of the greatest importance to expose to the general public in social media networks the importance of these symbols and the meaning behind them. Together, we will expose the face of antisemitism and uproot it, because it is not possible for organizations and antisemitic individuals to hide behind seemingly meaningless symbols.”

Hagoel said it was imperative “to respond to each antisemitic incident, to each swastika drawn on the wall, as if someone had been attacked or injured,” adding: “If we wear our Judaism with pride, the antisemites will not mess with us.”