Johnathan Paoli
International Relations and Cooperation minister Naledi Pandor has criticised Israel saying it had bred hatred by occupying Palestine and called on a two state solution and peaceful ceasefire to the Middle East conflict.
Pandor said South Africa agreed that the ultimate solution to the conflict remains the creation of two states, namely Israel and Palestine.
The minister called for an immediate comprehensive ceasefire and that humanitarian corridors should be opened so that aid and other basic services reach all those in need.
“The killing of civilians and destruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza by Israeli forces goes against the tenets of international law, which prohibits the targeting of non#combatants, especially women, the aged and children,” Pandor said.
Pandor said in a statement on Tuesday that just as Israel deserved peace and security, so were the Palestinians deserving of sovereignty, peace and security; and in order for international law to be credible, it must be applied uniformly and not selectively.
In addition, Pandor said that the conflict illustrated the inadequacy of the UN, in particular the Security Council, which has the mandate of maintaining international peace and security.
“It has clearly not been able, overtime, to prevent conflicts from spiralling into intense violence and harm to ordinary civilians. All of us need to work harder at reforming our organisation so that it is more capable of responding to the protection of civilians,” Pandor said.
Pandor said just like the Rwandan Genocide, she was appalled at the Security Council’s failure to agree on a unified resolution that signals a full commitment to ending the killing and suffering.
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