After a year of untold suffering, the people of the Middle East need peace and justice

Dear Fellow South African, 

Today marks one year since the start of an onslaught against the Palestinian people that has thus far claimed more than 43,000 lives. The violence that has been committed by Israel against Palestinians over many decades intensified after an attack on Israel by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups on 7 October last year. 

As South Africa, we have condemned the atrocities committed against civilians in Israel on 7 October 2023, as we have denounced the killing of civilians in any context.

The majority of those killed over the past year are Palestinian civilians, largely women and children in the besieged Gaza Strip. It is alarming that more Palestinians are also being killed in the West Bank due to Israeli Defence Force military activities. 

More than 1,000 Israelis were killed in the attacks of 7 October last year. Over 100 Israelis remain in captivity in Gaza. There are over 6,000 Palestinians who are languishing in Israeli jails. 

As South Africa, we have consistently called for a resolution to the conflict and the release of all the hostages abducted on 7 October 2023. We have also called for the release of all the prisoners unlawfully detained in Israel. We cannot but be moved by the plight of all the families who have loved ones in captivity. With negotiations to secure their release having once again stalled and Israel’s bombardment of Gaza continuing, the conflict shows no signs of abating. 

Amid efforts by the international community to secure a ceasefire, the situation has been worsened by strikes by Israel on Lebanon and by Iran on Israel. Israel has vowed to retaliate against Iran and Iran has threatened to respond accordingly.

The escalating situation in the Middle East is of grave concern. It threatens to plunge the region into a war in which civilians will inevitably bear the greatest and the most cruel brunt of this conflict. As the UN Secretary-General has said, each escalation after the next is leading the people of the Middle East over the cliff. 

As South Africa, we remain committed to the peaceful resolution to ending the occupation of Palestine, to upholding the tenets of international law and to advancing social justice. 

We once again call for an immediate ceasefire that will end the suffering of the people of Gaza and allow for humanitarian aid to reach those in need. 

Beyond an immediate end to the onslaught against Gaza, there is an urgent need for action to stave off starvation and disease among the population. Considerable resources need to be directed to Gaza to start rebuilding infrastructure, housing, social services, agricultural production and economic activity.

In our address to the UN General Assembly last month, we called for international law to be applied consistently in holding to account all who have committed atrocities in this conflict, whether it is Israel or Hamas.

Later this month, we will file a memorial, which is South Africa’s full substantive case based on evidence, at the International Court of Justice. The memorial contains detailed evidence to prove that Israel is committing the crime of genocide in Palestine. We call on Israel to immediately implement the court’s provisional orders issued on 26 January, 28 March 2024 and 24 May 2024.

The reality is that this latest escalation is part of a pattern of violence that spans more than half a century resulting from the occupation of Palestine. Until the occupation is ended and a just and lasting solution is found that will protect the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians, the region will remain a tinderbox of potential conflict and war. 

Israel has consistently declared that it aspires to live in peace and security with its neighbours. Yet its military occupation of the Syrian Golan Heights since 1967 and its invasions of Lebanon in 1978, 1982 and 2006 undermine this aspiration. 

Israel’s most recent attacks on Lebanon have resulted in more than 2,000 deaths. Even as Israel claims it is using ‘targeted strikes’ against the Hezbollah armed group, civilians are bearing the greatest cost, as they have been in Gaza. 

A protracted regional conflict that leads to the loss of more innocent lives is something the Middle East and the world cannot afford. We call on all parties to exercise restraint and for the tenets of international law to be respected.

Just as the countries of the world need to work together to ensure that this conflict is not allowed to spread, the international community must be seized with efforts to end the violence against Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

As a country we will continue to play our part in supporting all efforts to bring peace to the troubled Middle East region and to secure a just, lasting solution that ends the occupation of Palestine.