Israel, Honduras deepen defence ties amid Latin America rightward shift

Israel and Honduras have signed a new memorandum of understanding aimed at deepening defence cooperation, marking the latest sign of a broader shift in Latin American relations with Israel despite its nearly three-year genocidal war in Gaza, which has killed more than 70,000 Palestinians, nearly one-third of them children.

The agreement between the two countries places military and security cooperation at the centre of a relationship that had appeared to cool under Honduras' previous left-wing government.

In a statement, Israel's Defence Ministry said Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz and his Honduran counterpart, Enrique Rodríguez Burchard, signed the agreement to "deepen defence cooperation" between the two countries.

The signing was attended by Israeli Defence Ministry Director-General Amir Baram, the senior deputy head of the Policy and Political-Military Bureau, Israel's defence attaché to Honduras and other senior officials from both countries.

"The MOU signed today constitutes a significant milestone in strengthening defense relations between the two countries and establishes a framework for long-term cooperation based on shared interests and values," the Israeli ministry said.

The Honduran delegation was also given a window into the military experience Israel has accumulated during years of warfare across the region.

"The Honduran delegation received a briefing on the security and operational challenges Israel has faced in recent years, including key lessons from the multifront war and from contending with evolving and emerging threats in the region," the ministry said.

According to the statement, Honduran officials were also briefed on the Israeli Defence Ministry's current activities and "key aspects of Israel's defense and defense-industrial establishment".

Marta Tawil Kuri, a research professor at the Center for International Studies at El Colegio de México, told The New Arab that the agreement signals a strengthening of Honduras-Israel relations and a return to a familiar model.

"It signals a return to the pattern under [former president] Juan Orlando Hernandez: military cooperation as the central axis of the bilateral relationship," Kuri said. "The MOU signed by [Honduran President Nasry] Asfura with Katz reproduces that same logic: security/defense as the priority instrument of the relationship, rather than the Palestinian question as such."

From Gaza criticism to defence cooperation

The agreement marks a shift in tone from Honduras' position during the early stages of Israel's assault on Gaza.

Under former president Xiomara Castro, Honduras recalled its ambassador to Israel for consultations in 2023, after condemning the war and alleged violations of international law in the Gaza Strip.

But Honduras never severed diplomatic relations with Israel.

The country appointed a new ambassador earlier this month, who was received by Israeli President Isaac Herzog, and is now seeking deeper defence and security cooperation.

"Castro's pro-Palestinian gestures were limited, since Honduras never broke relations, kept diplomatic staff at the Jerusalem embassy, and took no formal position on South Africa's case against Israel at the International Court of Justice," Kuri said.

"In other words, the 2023 'tension' was more symbolic than structural. Asfura's turn does not break with an estranged relationship. It openly resumes a relationship that, according to the authors themselves, was never fully severed, only made less visible."

The Israeli Defence Ministry described Honduras as an "important partner" in Central America, highlighting in particular its record of supporting Israel in international forums.

Honduras was among just nine countries that voted against a 2017 UN General Assembly resolution rejecting the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

In 2021, Honduras became one of the first countries to move its embassy to Jerusalem, joining the US, Guatemala and Kosovo.

That history, Kuri said, points to a relationship in which defence and security ties have gone hand in hand with diplomatic support for Israel.

"Under Netanyahu, Israel systematically capitalized on the rise of right-wing governments in Central America (multiple Netanyahu visits to the region since 2007) to sell weapons and security technology — the Honduran case of 2016-2018 was paradigmatic — in exchange for Honduran diplomatic support in international forums, such as Honduras's 2017 vote against the UN resolution condemning the US embassy move to Jerusalem," she said.

The same calculation has acquired greater significance as Israel faces mounting international pressure over its conduct in Gaza, Kuri added.

"With Israel's current international isolation over Gaza, that same calculation repeats itself: every Latin American ally willing to deepen military cooperation (selling it equipment, buying its equipment) is also a vote and a voice of political backing at a moment of intense global diplomatic pressure."

Latin America's rightward shift

Honduras' decision to deepen its alliance with Israel under the new agreement comes amid a broader political shift across parts of Latin America, where right-wing governments have sought closer relations with Israel.

Kuri argued that leaders such as Asfura were also linking relations with Israel to "the need to show Washington an unambiguous alignment".

In Colombia, the nationalist government of President Abelardo de la Espriella recently reversed the decision by his left-wing predecessor, Gustavo Petro, to sever diplomatic relations with Israel in protest at the Gaza war.

Venezuela and Israel, meanwhile, have agreed to establish a mechanism to resume consular services after 17 years.

In Central America, Kuri described Honduras' trajectory as the "most volatile of the three" when compared with El Salvador and Guatemala, largely because Honduras "has seen genuine party alternation (right-left-right)".

"Guatemala maintained near-continuous alignment with Israel from Pérez Molina through Giammattei (2012-2024), and El Salvador moved from pro-Palestinian FMLN governments (Funes, Sánchez Cerén) to Bukele, markedly pro-Israel despite his Palestinian origin," she told The New Arab.

"The August 2026 agreement confirms that Honduras is realigning with the regional pro-Israel bloc."

That realignment comes even as Palestinians continue to be killed in Gaza despite the ceasefire agreed between Israel and Hamas in October 2025.

Israeli fire has killed more than 1,250 Palestinians in Gaza since the ceasefire, most of them civilians, according to Palestinian authorities.