International relations minister Naledi Pandor has confirmed that she spoke to Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh to discuss getting humanitarian aid to Palestine.
Dirco spokesperson Clayson Monyela said during the call, Pandor reiterated South Africa’s solidarity and support for the people of Palestine and expressed “sadness and regret” for the loss of innocent lives in Palestine and Israel.
“Minister Pandor and the Hamas leader discussed how to get the necessary humanitarian aid to Gaza and other parts of the Palestinian territories,” he said.
The call comes as the ongoing conflict in the Middle East has left scores of people dead, misplaced and desperate for humanitarian aid.
Monyela dismissed reports that Pandor also offered support for the “Battle of Al-Aqsa Flood” as untrue.
“Minister Pandor's call with the Hamas leader is in line with South Africa’s readiness to engage all interlocutors to facilitate dialogue to end the ongoing conflict.
“South Africa calls on all sides to seize the opportunity for peace as opposed to violence, and for the international community to actively advocate for the implementation of its own international resolutions and establish a credible peace process.”
Monyela said South Africa stands ready to share its experience in mediation and conflict resolution as it has done on the continent and around the world.
Meanwhile South African politicians are divided on the conflict. On Tuesday anti-apartheid activist and former Presidency director-general Rev Frank Chikane joined a number of political leaders who have called for the immediate end to Hamas-Israel hostilities and return to negotiations.
Speaking at the St George’s Anglican Church in Parktown Chikane said: “The rights of Palestinians have been ignored completely. They have been occupied for more than 50 years with no rights, their movements are constrained, refugees that have run away from homes aren’t allowed to return to their homes and the blockade of Gaza for about 16 years is completely untenable.”
Chikane said people cannot be constrained to a 60km2 area and expected to survive. “We are convinced that it’s time to end the apartheid system between the Jordan and the Mediterranean Sea. We have got human rights organisations that have analysed this and shown this is apartheid.
“The way we won against the apartheid system in South Africa, we should do the same in Palestine and mobilise the whole world. Citizens of the whole world need to take a stand, even against their own governments who support this racist apartheid system.
“It happened during our days where the government supported apartheid, and we campaigned to end that support and I believe that it is time for us to end this genocide.”
History cannot repeat itself, “it must end”, he said.
He said the world is ready to assist the people in Gaza. “What we just need is the world and the UN to take a stand. It has to come to an end, no people in the world should be subjected to what the Palestinians are subjected to.”
He said international law must be implemented.
Our government has been telling us a few months ago when the war started in Russia and Ukraine, South Africa is nonaligned and today South Africa is fully aligned to Hamas.
— Gayton McKenzie, Patriotic Alliance leader
In his closing remarks of the three-day NEC meeting held at the weekend, ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa reiterated the party’s condemnation “in the strongest terms” of the brutal killing of civilians by Hamas 10 days ago.
He said: “The ANC has also been perturbed by the genocidal and atrocious activities of the state of Israel, which are being directed indiscriminately at Palestinian citizens, shutting them off from all means of livelihoods.”
On Saturday the ANC said it “unashamedly” supported Palestine. It sent condolences to both the Palestinian and Israeli people.
“We have always made our position clear, we have always been in alliance with the people of Palestine and we support their cause unashamedly. But at the same time, we have also expressed our condolences to the Israelis who have died in this, particularly civilians, because even in our own struggle, the issue of civilians was a clear-cut exclusion. So we stand firm on those principles because they are inscribed in international law.”
However, Patriotic Alliance leader Gayton McKenzie condemned the government for taking a side in the war unfolding in the Middle East.
“Our government has been telling us a few months ago when the war started in Russia and Ukraine, South Africa is nonaligned and today South Africa is fully aligned to Hamas.
“We should build a country that is a peacemaker instead of a country that chooses sides. The PA leadership believes in talking and fostering peace, but now the South African president and his entire cabinet have basically said they are with Hamas, which is a sister organisation to Al-Qaeda.”
McKenzie said SA achieved its freedom through dialogue and not through “slitting the throats of babies” and “attacking defenceless women”.
The EFF echoed the ANC’s stance and called for the protection of children, women and civilians in the conflict. The party said it blames the escalating conflict on the “occupation and oppression” of the Palestinian people.
“The continued expansionist policy of apartheid — the Israeli state is provocative. The building of settler houses in the land of the Palestinian people and further land encroachment is against numerous UN resolutions that apartheid-Israel has flatly defied.”
The EFF said the Israeli government is in a “perpetual breach of international law”.
Meanwhile, Pieter Groenewald of the FF+ said it was his party’s view that the aggressor was Hamas and must be condemned.
“Israel has the fullest right to protect its sovereignty and its citizens. The attack of Hamas was on innocent women, children and citizens and the killings were barbaric and a crime against humanity and must be condemned in the strongest possible way. Hamas is a terrorist organisation and must be banned,” he said.
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