Vanina Biasi becomes the first sitting legislator in Argentina charged with antisemitism for tweets comparing Israel to Nazi Germany — a legal milestone in the country’s crackdown on hate speech.
Argentina has entered uncharted legal territory after Vanina Biasi, a prominent member of the left-wing Workers’ Party, was indicted on criminal charges for a series of incendiary social media posts branding Israel a “genocide state” and comparing it to Nazi Germany.
Biasi’s indictment — the first against a sitting Argentine lawmaker for antisemitism — also marks the first time that online demonization of Israel has been legally recognized as antisemitic in the nation. The move comes amid an aggressive campaign by President Javier Milei’s administration to confront antisemitism and anti-Israel rhetoric head-on.
The charges stem from eight tweets posted between November 27, 2023, and January 29, 2024. In one post, Biasi wrote:
“The Zionist Nazis need to destroy UNRWA humanitarian aid so the extermination can accelerate. They use famine, like in Nazi concentration camps, as a method of extermination.”
In another, she declared:
“The Zionist state is Nazi because of its practices and ideology.”
Prosecutors argued her comments crossed the line from political criticism into hate speech under Argentina’s Anti-Discrimination Law. In April, a federal judge sided with them, ruling that her words incited hatred against Jews and ordering an asset seizure worth about $7,500.
Biasi’s legal team appealed, citing free speech protections — but on Thursday, the Federal Chamber unanimously upheld the indictment, stressing that freedom of expression is not absolute and can be limited to safeguard public order, national security, and human rights.
If convicted, Biasi faces one month to three years in prison. The case has split public opinion: critics fear a chilling effect on political speech, while supporters say it’s a long-overdue stand against dangerous rhetoric.
The DAIA, Argentina’s leading Jewish umbrella group, welcomed the decision, accusing Biasi of amplifying “classic stigmas of modern antisemitism” and warning that her political status gave her words far-reaching influence.
Biasi, undeterred, has called the prosecution “politically motivated”, urging mass protests against Israel and declaring, “There is no greater absurdity than believing they will silence us with judicial persecution.”
