Gaza: South Africa’s president carpets Israel, re-affirms ANC support for Palestinian struggle
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has again reiterated the call for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza, calling the ongoing war in the enclave a “genocide,”
Speaking at a media briefing alongside South African organizations supporting the liberation of Palestine Ramaphosa said the people of Palestine are going through what South Africans have experienced during the apartheid era.
The South African leader said the war in Gaza by Israel is a genocidal onslaught on the innocent people of Palestine.
Ramaphosa critisised the collective punishment being meted out on civilians by the Israeli forces, especially Palestinian children and women.
He pointed out that “Children and women are being killed cruelly,” while emphasising that this should concern everyone in the world.
The South African president re-pledged the support of the ruling ANC towards the struggle of the people of Palestine for their freedom and self-determination.
“We do this not out of political adventurism, for us this is a matter of principle. A principle that is born out of our own experience as a people of South Africa, who struggled against an oppressive apartheid system,” he said.
“People around the world are responding with horror to what they see in Gaza. This should stop now. Hostages must be released and so must the prisoners who are being held in Israeli prisons be released to create a conducive environment for peaceful discussions,” the president said.
According to health officials in the enclave, Israel’s air and ground operations on the Gaza Strip since the Oct. 7 Hamas offensive have killed more than 19,400 Palestinians, predominantly women and children, and injured over 52,000 others.
About 2 million people were also displaced within the densely-populated enclave amid shortages of food and clean water.
Nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack, while more than 100 hostages remaining in the hands of their abductors.
