Israeli troops fought on Monday to regain control of the desert surrounding the Gaza Strip and evacuate people from the disputed border area. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Israel on Sunday to prepare for a “long and difficult” conflict, a day after the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a surprise attack from Gaza in which fighters fired thousands of rockets, killing civilians and taking at least 100 hostages. took.
More than 700 Israelis have been killed since Hamas launched its large-scale attack. At least 413 deaths were reported in Gaza after Israel launched airstrikes. The conflict has a global impact with several countries reporting that some of their citizens are killed, kidnapped or missing, including Brazil, Britain, France, Germany, Ireland, Mexico, Nepal, Thailand and Ukraine.
At least 100 Israeli citizens were captured by Hamas and kidnapped to Gaza, with images of bloodied hostages circulated on social media.
‘ANC sides with terrorist group’
Dr. Corné Mulder, FF Plus MP and the party’s spokesperson on international relations, said the ANC has unequivocally underlined that the government of South Africa supports the terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel and has thus aligned itself with a terrorist group against the rest of the world.
The ANC’s national spokesperson, Mahlengi Bhengi-Motsiri, blamed Israel for the attack on its sovereign territory and the bloodshed that claimed the lives of hundreds of civilians.
“While the attack made the world stand up and it was widely described as terrorism with images on social media of women, the elderly and children being attacked, murdered and kidnapped, the ANC said in a statement that the actions of the Hamas militants are ‘justified’.”
According to Mulder, the reality is that Hamas carried out a completely unexpected and cold-blooded attack without reason on ordinary civilians and fired thousands of rockets at Israeli residential areas.
“The ANC and the government of South Africa show by this that in its heart it is still nothing but a liberation movement and therefore could never develop into a government of a democratic country that must watch over its own sovereignty.”
The FF Plus strongly condemned the Hamas attack on Israel. “South Africa and all its people will pay the price for the government’s sentiments towards a terrorist organisation.
“This attack is barbaric, without any provocation and cannot be condoned in any way.
“The FF Plus emphasizes its support for the state of Israel and recognizes Israel’s right to defend itself and its citizens with all means at its disposal.”
