The South African government and the country’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) have described as violations of international law last Friday’s attacks by the Israeli army on Palestinian worshippers and the planned eviction of Palestinians from part of occupied East Jerusalem.
Israeli security forces attacked Muslim worshippers inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque on May 7, leaving nearly 53 Palestinians injured in clashes inside the Haram al-Sharif area, according to a statement by the Palestinian Red Crescent.
The forces stormed the mosque in Jerusalem as thousands of Palestinians gathered during the final week of Ramadan, using tear gas and rubber-coated bullets on worshippers.
“Israel’s actions are in stark violation of international law, also a disregard of international humanitarian law and UN Security Council Resolutions,” South Africa’s Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation said Monday.
It said it was disturbing that as the international community was trying to address the global challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic, “Israel is exploiting the situation to advance its de facto annexation of Palestinian land.”
“These acts are not only illegal but also risk undermining the viability of a negotiated two-state solution and will have negative consequences on the entire peace process,” the ministry said in a statement.
The ANC blasted Israel over its planned eviction of Palestinians from East Jerusalem, describing the move as “part of a well co-ordinated and elaborate agenda by apartheid Israel to entrench its illegal occupation of Palestinian lands and to render the people of Palestine landless in their own land.”
The party called on the United Nations to “put relentless pressure on the Israeli regime to stop its campaign of systematic repression and ruthless brutality against the people of Palestine.”
JN/APA