JOHANNESBURG: South Africa on Wednesday denounced Israel’s restriction of aid into war-ravaged Gaza since the weekend, saying it amounted to using starvation as a weapon of war.
A fragile ceasefire since January saw an influx of humanitarian aid into Gaza, before Israel on Sunday announced it was blocking deliveries until Hamas accepted its terms for an extension of the truce.
“Preventing food from entering Gaza is a continuation of Israel’s use of starvation as a weapon of war as part of the ongoing campaign of what the ICJ ruled to be plausible genocide against the Palestinian people,” the South African foreign ministry said in a statement, referring to Pretoria’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
“The people of Gaza are experiencing immeasurable suffering and urgently need food, shelter and medical supplies,” it added.
“South Africa calls on the international community to hold Israel accountable,” it said.
While Israel has said it wants to extend the first phase of the ceasefire until mid-April, Hamas — which sparked the war in Gaza with its October 2023 attack on Israel — has insisted on a transition to the deal’s second phase, which should lead to a permanent end to the war.
South Africa in December 2023 brought a case before the ICJ, arguing that the war in Gaza breached the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention, an accusation Israel has strongly denied.
Several nations have added their weight to the proceedings, including Spain, Bolivia, Colombia, Mexico, Turkiye, Chile and Libya.
While ICJ rulings are legally binding, the court has no concrete means to enforce them.
South Africa also said it condemned Israel’s offensive in the occupied West Bank which has expanded to more areas of Jenin city.
At least three people were killed on Tuesday, the Israeli military said although Palestinian officials reported two dead.
The offensive was “a dangerous escalation, and which further threatens the Palestinian quest for self-determination and statehood,” South Africa said.
“The expanded Israeli military presence, now at its highest levels in the West Bank since 2002, signals an intent to re-establish full-scale military occupation,” it said.
Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967 and its troops carry out regular raids there.
The current offensive in the northern West Bank began on January 21 around refugee camps regarded as bastions of Palestinian militancy.
It has since expanded to more areas and displaced tens of thousands of people and saw the first deployment of Israeli tanks in the territory in 20 years.