South Africans: Down With Israeli Embassy

Pan-African political party Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) led a pro-Palestine demonstration on 23 October in Pretoria, South Africa. The protesters chanted “free Palestine” while approaching the Israeli embassy in the South African capital. They condemned Israel's attack on Gaza, terming it a genocide and demanding the closure of the embassy. While addressing the protest, EFF President Julius Malema said Israel has to be stopped, so that, when a two-state solution is reached, the Zionist state will not expand illegally into Palestinian territory. South Africans have held several protests in support of Palestine since the recent escalation that began 7 October in the 75-year conflict between Israel and Palestine. The death toll in Gaza has surpassed 5,000 people, as of press time. Israeli deaths on 7 October numbered 1,400. Meanwhile, about 1 million people have been displaced in Gaza as Israel has continued a bombing campaign on hundreds of targets in the enclave, including a hospital. Some of the Israeli airstrikes have targeted the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, where a few dozen trucks await entry into the enclave to transport humanitarian aid. Two United Nations Security Council resolutions calling for aid delivery and/or a ceasefire failed to pass last week because the United States, a permanent UNSC member state, vetoed both.

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