Image by France24
South Africa – Several Palestinians were killed during a rescue mission by Israeli Occupation Forces in Rafah’s Southern City on Monday, where two Israeli hostages were retrieved. The operation, backed by airstrikes in various parts of the city, resulted in the murder of around 100 Palestinians, a number anticipated to increase according to health officials in Gaza.
Currently, Rafah houses over half of Gaza’s population, around 1.3 million Palestinians, seeking refuge from Israeli attacks.
The region faces critical shortages of essential supplies like food, water, medicine, and shelter. Despite its dense civilian population, predominantly children, Israel has continued to conduct airstrikes in the area.
Zane Dangor, the Director General of the Department of International Relations and Cooperations, stated the recent attack on Rafah highlights the true objective of the Israeli government, which appears not solely focused on combating Hamas.
“The objective is not to deal with Hamas or the attacks on October 7. The objective is actually to further settlement action and to deepen the occupation. That is why the violence is continuing the way it is.”
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The International Community Needs to Hold Israel Accountable
The assault on Rafah has raised concerns about Israel’s potential for a ground invasion in southern Gaza. Despite widespread condemnation from Western allies, reports indicate Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s determination for the Israeli government to proceed with this intent.
They have persisted in executing successive waves of airstrikes on Palestinians despite international pressure and condemnation urging a halt to the attacks on Rafah.
Dangor considers that South Africa has taken the initial step in exposing the atrocities, genocide, and war crimes committed against the Palestinians at the ICJ. However, this alone is insufficient to cease the aggression against the civilian population.
Therefore, he emphasised the need for a global and collective escalation to the Security Council and the International Criminal Court, amongst other world Institutions. This escalation aims to hold Israeli leaders criminally liable for continuously ordering such violent actions.
“We need accountability and action around this kind of impunity from the institutions set up to deal with this. We will engage with our partners in the International Community regarding the consequences of impunity and ask them to ensure that this stops now. We need to have a collective voice that says this is enough.”
