Riyaz Patel
The ANC has reiterated its “unequivocal support for the freedom of the people of Palestine,” emphasizing that the Palestinian struggle for self-determination is just.
Any peaceful solution that does not include both Palestine and Israel will have no legitimacy, the ANC said in a statement after US President Donald Trump announced his Middle East peace plan Tuesday.
The ANC reaffirmed its solidarity with the people of Palestine and called for a just solution to the Middle East conflict, including the “strengthening of a sovereign independent state of Palestine” which South Africa’s ruling party believes will help to bring peace to the region and end conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.
The ANC further called on the Israeli government to “release all Palestinian political prisoners; to immediately cease the expansion of settlements in the West Bank; and to stop the wanton and consistent attacks on Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.”
In line with the resolution adopted at the party’s 54th National Conference, the ANC, in their statement, directed the South African government to immediately and unconditionally downgrade the Israeli Embassy in South Africa to a liaison office.
The ANC said downgrading the Israeli Embassy in South Africa will represent a practical act of solidarity with the “oppressed people of Palestine in the face of injustices and atrocities meted out against innocent civilians.”
The government last year downgraded its embassy in Tel Aviv, following a decision taken by the ANC more than a year ago.
In addition, the party called on all organisations and people that support the cause of a free Palestine to strengthen the solidarity campaign for a just and peaceful solution.
