The EFF welcomes the cabinet’s decision to withdraw all South Africa’s diplomats from “apartheid Israel”. The party believes this is a necessary step if the South African government is serious about standing in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
“This is also a step that should have been taken a long time ago and one that the EFF has continuously advocated for,” says Sinawo Thambo, national spokesperson of the EFF.
However, the party is asking that the diplomats not only be recalled for consultation.
“We call on the government not only to recall the diplomats for consultation, but also to completely sever all political and economic relations with apartheid Israel.”
Thambo says it is essential that South Africa ends its diplomatic relations with a “racist genocidal nation” like Israel, “especially as a country with its own painful history of apartheid”.
“As things stand, Israel with the support of the white supremacist, imperialist, power-hungry USA, France, Germany and other Western countries, has overseen the killing of more than 10,000 Palestinians in military attacks over the past four weeks, which 30 000 tons of explosives on defenseless Palestinians,” says Thambo.
“They kidnapped innocent civilians, held them hostage, tortured them, bombed hospitals, homes, and even universities in Gaza and the West Bank, forcing almost 70% of Gaza’s population from their homes.”
According to international media, no civilians have been taken hostage by Israel so far, as the EFF claims. At this stage, Palestinians were indeed trapped in the occupied Gaza Strip amid Israel’s retaliatory campaign.
Thambo also recalled on Tuesday the South African government’s decision at the time to recall South Africa’s ambassador to Israel in protest and to downgrade the embassy in Israel to a liaison office that only offers consular services.
RNews reported at the time that South Africa’s ambassador to Israel was withdrawn with immediate effect in May 2018 during a day of fighting between Israeli forces and Palestinians that led to the death of at least 58 people in the Gaza Strip.
“This is a necessary step in our continued solidarity with the Palestinian people,” says Thambo now about the cabinet’s decision to recall South Africa’s diplomats from Israel again amid conflict between that country and the Palestinians.
