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The South African Communist Party (SACP) reiterates its unwavering solidarity with the Palestinian people. We condemn in the strongest terms possible the genocide of over 10,000 Palestinian people by the United States’ partner in crime, the apartheid Israeli settler state, in Gaza since 7 October 2023.

The SACP welcomes South Africa’s recall of its diplomats from Israel for consultation and rejects the Freedom Front Plus’s racialised objection with the contempt it deserves. In seeking to justify their objection, ignoring the genocide committed by Israel against the Palestinian people, Freedom Front Plus Leader Pieter Groenewald asserts, “We must also remember that there is a strong Jewish Community in South Africa and many of them are involved in businesses…” For reference, the SABC headlined the Freedom Front Plus’s objection in its consecutive news bulletins yesterday and maintained it in a series of its news bulletins today.

In contradiction to what the Freedom Front Plus wants, more still needs to be done to show that South Africa does not tolerate genocides. The Israeli embassy in South Africa must shut down and the ambassador, together with the entire staff, must be sent packing as a matter of urgency. 

We call on workers to refuse to handle any imports from and exports to Israel, as part of intensifying the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against the apartheid Israeli regime. 

Describing what is in fact the genocide, the United Nations General-Secretary, António Guterres, said, “The nightmare in Gaza is more than a humanitarian crisis. It is a crisis of humanity”. He added that “Gaza is becoming a graveyard for children.” Guterres emphasised “the need for a humanitarian ceasefire [is] more urgent with every passing hour”.

It did not happen on its own: It is the apartheid Israeli settler state that has turned Gaza into what he described as a graveyard for children, women and men in Gaza. Besides those the Israeli regime murdered, including entire families, it wounded over 25,000 and displaced about 1.5 million people. 

The imperialist United States regime, which arms and defends the Israeli genocide against the Palestinian people, must be held to account together with the leaders of the apartheid Israeli settler state.

Issued by The South African Communist Party