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© ReutersUruguay's Foreign Affairs Minister Luis Almagro.
Uruguay will join Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru and Venezuela in having an embassy in the embattled Palestine.

The Uruguayan ambassador Enrique Ribeiro will travel to Ramallah, Palestine on Friday to open the new Uruguayan embassy.

Foreign Minister Luis Almagro confirmed the urgent transfer of Ribeiro to Ramallah.

In the letter, the Palestinian Authority, through Minister Riad Malki, welcomed the decision of the Uruguayan government to proceed with the opening of a permanent diplomatic mission in Ramallah and he also offered full support to the Uruguayan ambassador to facilitate his work.

They also expressed their appreciation for the continued support of Uruguay in "the just and legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people to recover their inalienable rights."

The Uruguayan President, José Mujica, has said that all countries have the right to defend itself, referring to the Israeli argument to attack Palestinians in Gaza, but stressed that "everything has a limit," and to "bombard hospitals, young and old, is genocide."

But the new Israeli ambassador to Uruguay, Nina Ben-Ami responded by saying. "it is not the kind of language I expect from a friendly country.