The department of international relations and co-operation (Dirco) has called for safe passage for the Global Sumud Flotilla which is carrying activists from several countries, including six South Africans, to deliver much-needed humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Dirco's call on Thursday came after the flotillasaid on Wednesday it was attacked overnight by drones in international waters off Greece, prompting Italy to send a navy ship to come to its assistance.
The flotilla is using about 50 civilian boats to try to break Israel's naval blockade of Gaza, with many lawyers and activists onboard, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg, Mandla Mandela and five other South Africans.
Dirco spokesperson Chrispin Phiri said the South African government had reiterated its call for the safe passage of the, “civil society initiative” aimed at delivering humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and raising awareness about the urgent humanitarian needs of the Palestinian people and the need to stop the war in Gaza.
“The government commends with appreciation the efforts of the six South African citizens aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla,” Phiri said.
“We further extend our gratitude to the governments that have facilitated the flotilla’s safe passage amid complex circumstances.
“South Africa calls upon the international community to intensify its efforts to ensure the flotilla’s unimpeded and safe passage. It is imperative that the norms of international law and international humanitarian law are upheld, and that all parties respect their obligations to protect civilian lives and humanitarian missions.”
The flotilla set sail between August and September with convoys departing from Genoa on August 30, from Barcelona on August 31, and from Tunis and Catania on September 7 (originally planned for September 4). Theirr arrival was initially estimated to be mid-September.
On Saturday activist Dr Allan Boesak, participating in the pro-Palestine protest in Cape Town, , showed his support for Palestine.
“South Africa has been part of the growing international movement of solidarity with Palestine from the very beginning. It is important that we affirm that once again today. It’s important that we do this march now because the genocide and attacks on Palestinians are continuing, ethnic cleansing is continuing,” Boesak said.
On Friday, minister of international relations and co-operation Ronald Lamola and Colombian foreign affairs minister Rosa Villavicencio, who are co-chairs of the Hague Group, reiterated calls for Israel to comply with international laws over its occupation of Gaza.
The group of nations from the Global South, formed in January this year to protect and uphold the rulings of the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court, has also put out a statement reaffirming its support of Palestine.
“Today, on the sidelines of the 80th UN General Assembly, The Hague Group convened more than thirty governments to consolidate these measures into a co-ordinated global strategy to halt the Gaza genocide. We affirm:
- that accountability as a principle cannot be forsaken;
- that Israel cannot be permitted to continue its crimes with impunity;
- that every state has obligations to prevent genocide and implement international law;
- that co-ordinated enforcement — through our courts, ports, contracts, factories, and financial systems — an unavoidable path to justice for the people of Palestine,” the Hague Group, chaired by South Africa and Columbia said.
“Such co-ordination strengthens the global response to Israel’s ongoing crimes, setting a model for all states to immediately fulfil their legal obligations, and creating robust mechanisms for accountability at the national, regional, and international levels.
“History will judge us not by the speeches we delivered, but by the actions we took. Together, we call on all states to join us in cutting ties of complicity across arms, finance, and energy — and in ensuring that justice is not delayed but delivered.
“The people of Palestine cannot wait — and The Hague Group will not rest until it has rallied the world to defend the international laws that protect them,” the group said.
TimesLIVE
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