Johnathan Paoli
The EFF on Wednesday denounced, as genocidal, the recent missile attack by Israeli armed forces on the Al Ahli hospital in Gaza, causing the death of over 500 Palestinians including children.
On Tuesday, at least 500 people were killed in what the health ministry in Gaza has confirmed as an Israeli raid, resulting in widespread condemnation all around the world.
Located in central Gaza, the hospital, which is run by the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, was struck while it was overwhelmed with thousands of Palestinians seeking shelter amid a campaign of brutal Israeli air attacks across much of the besieged Gaza Strip.
The recent bombing proves to be the highest death toll of any single incident in Gaza during the current war between Israel and Hamas, with hundreds of other victims remaining under the rubble.
Israel, however, has attributed the explosion to a misfired rocket launched by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) armed group, an allegation which the PIJ has vehemently denied.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said Israel crossed “all red lines” by targeting the hospital, calling the attack a “hideous war massacre” that cannot be tolerated.
EFF Spokesperson Sinawo Thambo condemned the aid given to Israel by the United States, and said that the cooperation clearly illustrated a racist, colonial and Zionist agenda, intent on the eradication and displacement of Palestinians from their land.
“The cruelty and disregard by Apartheid-Israel for the vulnerable human lives at Al Ahli Hospital, seeking refuge and healthcare, confirms what the EFF has always known, which is that Israel is a terrorist state that is intent on crushing Palestinian life into extinction,” Thambo said.
The party called on all Palestinian allies to provide medical, humanitarian and military aid and that it was no longer enough to pay lip service to the cause of the people of Palestine, while Israel receives millions of dollars of funding from the USA to enact a genocide.
“Palestine has a right to defend itself, its people and its land, and the entire world must stand against the terror of Israel,” the spokesperson said.
South Africa has taken a strong stance against Israel’s heavy-handedness in Gaza and the country has also condemned Hamas’ attack on Israel while President Cyril Ramaphosa has made it clear that the country stands with the people of Palestine.
The EFF’s comments come after recent communication between Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, in which the minister expressed the country’s solidarity with the people of Palestine.
Dirco said that the leader of Hamas made a request to speak to the Minister to discuss how humanitarian aid would be sent to Gaza and other parts of Palestine.
African Union chief Moussa Faki Mahamat has accused Israel of a “war crime” following the deadly strike.
“There are no words to fully express our condemnation of Israel’s bombing of a #Gaza hospital today, killing hundreds of people,” Faki tweeted.
The Egyptian government issued a statement denouncing the attack “in the strongest terms”, calling on the international community to step in and prevent further violations.
Israel’s allies have been less than eager to condemn the massacre, with France and Germany stating “horror” at the images of the hospital explosion without attributing blame for the attack.
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