South Africa slams Israel for weaponizing starvation in Gaza
South Africa has denounced Israel for blocking the entry of food into the besieged Gaza Strip, saying the regime has been using starvation as a weapon of war against the people of Gaza.
The South African Ministry of Foreign Affairs called on the international community on Wednesday to hold Israel accountable for preventing food from entering Gaza.
“Preventing food from entering Gaza is a continuation of Israel’s use of starvation as a weapon of war as part of the ongoing campaign of what the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled to be plausible genocide against the Palestinian people,” the South African Foreign Ministry said in a statement, referring to Pretoria’s case against Israel at the ICJ.
“The people of Gaza are experiencing immeasurable suffering and urgently need food, shelter and medical supplies,” the statement said.
“South Africa calls on the international community to hold Israel accountable.”
A ceasefire agreement, reached in January, has allowed the entrance of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
On March 2, Israel announced it was blocking aid deliveries until Hamas accepted its terms for an extension of the ceasefire agreement.
Israel has said it wants to extend the first phase of the ceasefire until mid-April. Hamas is against this.
The Palestinian resistance movement has insisted on a transition to the deal’s second phase, which would allow for a permanent end to the regime’s campaign of genocide.
In December 2023, South Africa brought a case before the ICJ that argued the actions of the Israeli regime during the war in Gaza breached the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention.
Since then, several nations have added their political weight to the proceedings, including Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Libya, Mexico, Spain and Turkey.
South Africa has also condemned Israel’s aggression in the occupied West Bank, which has expanded to more areas of Jenin.
The regime’s operation in the occupied West Bank began after the January ceasefire agreement took effect and is one of the largest since the Second Intifada in the 1990s.
South Africa says the offensive has been “a dangerous escalation.” It, the statement says, “further threatens the Palestinian quest for self-determination and statehood.”
The regime has claimed it intends to battle Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters that supposedly operate in the occupied territory.
Israel’s aggression has since expanded to more areas and displaced tens of thousands of people.
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