Dani Dayan
Dani DayanHadas Parush/Flash 90

Silence. This is the response that Israel has received since submitting Dani Dayan's credentials as ambassador to Brazil, about two months ago.

According to standard diplomatic conduct, a country is expected to automatically approve incoming ambassadors. However, it appears that Brazil is intentionally ignoring Israel's choice of Dani Dayan, possibly in the hope that Jerusalem will appoint someone else.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry has stepped up its efforts against those who wish to cancel Dayan's appointment, which already include the President, senior ministers, the Knesset Speaker, and numerous diplomats. By now, nothing remains but the official approval.

Some of Dayan's opponents appealed to Brazil, asking the government to reject Dayan. Members of this group claimed that, should he be accepted, it would give international legitimacy to the "settlement enterprise."

This include the former director of the Foreign Ministry, Alon Liel, who served as Israel's ambassador to South Africa and chargé d'affaires in Turkey, former ambassador to South Africa Ilan Baruch, and former ambassador to France Eli Bar-Navi.

In addition, a number of anti-Israeli groups in Brazil have expressed their opposition to Dayan serving as ambassador.

It is rare for a country to reject another's ambassador and such an occurrence has almost never happened in recent years, though political leaders are expressing concern over the situation in Brazil.

Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely (Likud) told Arutz Sheva last week that "every system is working so that Dani's appointment is quickly approved."

Hotovely admitted that it is a difficult process. "There are problems, and we have a regime that very cynically does everything it can to appease its Muslim minority. With regards to this, it is delaying the appointment, and we have seen Brazil do this to other countries, not just us."

She concluded: "We believe that, at the end of the day, Israel and Brazil have many shared interests and so the appointment will pass."