Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has claimed that the World Health Organization (WHO) encourages young children to be gay and masturbate.

Bolsonaro, sometimes described as the “Trump of the tropics,” has repeatedly clashed with the WHO over its advice on dealing with the coronavirus crisis.

Bolsonaro made the claim in a deleted Facebook post, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.

“This is the World Health Organization whose advice on coronavirus some people want me to follow,” he wrote.

“Should we follow their education policy guidelines, too? For children zero to four years old: satisfaction and pleasure when touching their bodies, masturbation. … For children four to six years old: a positive gender identity … masturbation in early childhood, same-sex relations. … Nine to 12 years old: first sexual experience.”

According to AFP, Bolsonaro was misrepresenting information the WHO published in 2010. In a guide titled “Standards for Sexuality Education in Europe,” the WHO's European office briefly explained that children often touch themselves and are curious about sexuality. But the WHO did not encourage the behaviors claimed by Brazil's right-wing president.

Bolsonaro, a vocal opponent of LGBT rights, has been at odds with the WHO over how to respond to COVID-19, which he has described as a “little flu.”

Of the ten largest nations by population, Brazil has the third-highest number of coronavirus cases per capita after the United States and Russia. Those numbers could climb as Brazil ramps up its testing, which lags far behind other industrialized nations.