S’Africa welcomes Amnesty report exposing genocide in Gaza

South Africa has welcomed Amnesty International’s report, which has exposed the genocide against the Palestinian people in occupied Gaza.

According to a statement released by the South African Government on Friday, stated that this latest report is no exception.

Amnesty International, a reputable and fiercely independent non-governmental organization, is known for its rigorous and detailed reports.
The statement stated further that the findings of this report affirm South Africa’s case before International Court of Justice and align with the following reports from the United Nations:

The UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, Dr Tlaleng Mofokeng, stated that the Israeli leadership’s promise last year to destroy Gaza has been fulfilled.

“The Strip now is a wasteland of rubble and human remains, where survivors struggle to hold on to life, and bodies are decomposing in the ruins of what used to be clinics and hospitals”, Dr Mofokeng added.
Also, the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the Palestinian Territory Occupied, Francesca Albanese, emphasized that the international community must recognize what is happening in Gaza as genocide.

She urged understanding of the broader design behind the current situation in Palestine, noting that Palestinians have experienced war crimes and crimes against humanity throughout their lives, but the current situation is different.

“The work of Amnesty International must be viewed through the prism of human rights defenders. We call upon the international community to support the right to defend human rights and to strengthen protection of human rights defenders from any repercussions of their work.

“We urge all to protect and support those who expose atrocities and advocate for the oppressed. South Africa calls for immediate an immediate ceasefire and for protection of Palestinian lives and rights”.
Amnesty International’s research has found sufficient basis to conclude that Israel has committed and is continuing to commit genocide against Palestinians in occupied Gaza Strip, the organization said in landmark new report published on Thursday

The report, ‘You Feel Like You Are Subhuman’: Israel’s Genocide Against Palestinians in Gaza, documents how, during its military offensive launched in the wake of the deadly Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel on 7 October 2023, Israel unleashed hell and destruction on Palestinians in Gaza brazenly, continuously and with total impunity.

“Amnesty International’s report demonstrates that Israel has carried out acts prohibited under the Genocide Convention, with the specific intent to destroy Palestinians in Gaza.

“These acts include killings, causing serious bodily or mental harm and deliberately inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction.
“Month after month, Israel has treated Palestinians in Gaza as a subhuman group unworthy of human rights and dignity, demonstrating its intent to physically destroy them,” said Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International. 

“Our damning findings must serve as a wake-up call to the international community: this is genocide. It must stop now.

“States that continue to transfer arms to Israel at this time must know they are violating their obligation to prevent genocide and are at risk of becoming complicit in genocide.

“All states with influence over Israel, particularly key arms suppliers like the USA and Germany, but also other EU member states, the UK and others, must act now to bring Israel’s atrocities against Palestinians in Gaza to an immediate end.”
Over the past two months the crisis has grown particularly acute in the North Gaza governorate, where a besieged population is facing starvation, displacement and annihilation amid relentless bombardment and suffocating restrictions on life-saving humanitarian aid.

Report, “Our research reveals that, for months, Israel has persisted in committing genocidal acts, fully aware of the irreparable harm it was inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza.

“It continued to do so in defiance of countless warnings about the catastrophic humanitarian situation and of legally binding decisions from International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordering Israel to take measures to enable the provision of humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza. 

“Israel has repeatedly argued that its actions in Gaza are lawful and can be justified by its military goal to eradicate Hamas. But genocidal intent can co-exist alongside military goals and does not need to be Israel’s sole intent.”