South Africa Joins Diplomatic Boycott of Israel

Improve the News Foundation -

Facts

  • On Monday, South Africa called back all of its diplomats from Israel over its response to Hamas's Oct. 7 attack — which reportedly killed over 1.4K people and saw more than 240 taken hostage — joining a growing list of countries to take similar actions, including Bolivia, Jordan, and Bahrain, among others.1
  • According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, the death toll in Gaza has surpassed 10K, including over 4K children, with Pretoria claiming that Tel Aviv's Gaza bombardment amounts to the 'collective punishment' of Palestinians.2
  • Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, has challenged the figure, claiming that it includes the deaths of 'several thousand' Palestinian fighters.3
  • The recalling of the diplomats, according to Foreign Minister Pandor, is 'normal practice,' and the envoys would give the government a 'full briefing,' after which the government would decide whether it could be of assistance or whether a 'continued relationship is actually able to be sustained.'4
  • Last week, South Africa urged the UN to send a rapid protection force to Gaza to protect its civilian population from further Israeli airstrikes. In a strongly worded statement, the Foreign Ministry of South Africa denounced Israeli attacks on Gaza, saying, 'All countries genuinely committed to a rules-based system underpinned by international law must act immediately.'5
  • In addition, the South African government threatened to take diplomatic action against Eliav Belotserkovsky, the Israeli ambassador to South Africa, over his recent remarks in an opinion piece regarding the African nation's position on the Gaza conflict.6

Sources: 1The Times of Israel, 2Associated Press, 3Al Jazeera, 4BBC News, 5AA and 6Haaretz.

Narratives

  • Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Common Dreams. Removing all diplomatic personnel from Tel Aviv is a signal to Israel that Pretoria does not stand by its policies in Palestine and its illegal occupation. This move is a show of solidarity with the Palestinian people.
  • Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Archive. This diplomatic action by South Africa is unacceptable. Tel Aviv expects Pretoria to condemn Hamas and support Israel's right to defend itself from a catastrophic assault by a terrorist group.

Predictions