SA government urges international action to halt ‘genocide’ in Gaza

The South African government has called on the international community to take urgent and decisive action to halt what it describes as an ongoing genocide in Gaza.

On Monday, a United Nations Independent Commission of Inquiry found Israel guilty of committing acts of genocide against Palestinians in Gaza with the intent to destroy the population in the territory.

The findings by the commission come more than two years after the devastating conflict wreaked havoc in Gaza, where nearly 65,000 people have been killed, mostly women and children.

The Commission’s damning report cites a pattern of killings, aid blockades, forced displacement, and the destruction of civilian infrastructure. It concludes that Israeli forces committed four of the five acts defined as genocidal under the 1948 Genocide Convention — allegations Israel has strongly denied.

The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) says the UN report is a powerful affirmation of the concerns that led South Africa to file a case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in December 2023.

DIRCO spokesperson, Chrispin Phiri said the report reinforces fears that the Palestinian people face erasure in real time, and stressed that international law itself is now on trial.

“At stake is not merely the fate of the Palestinian people, but the very principle of justice over impunity,” Phiri said.

The Palestine Human Rights Organisation Africa4Palestine welcomed the report, saying it is a step in the right direction.

The organisation believes that the doors are certainly closing in on Israel’s impunity and lawlessness.

“Israel has waged criminal wars in the region with no consequence. They bombed Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Iran and Qatar, aided and abetted by the United States and killed leaders and civilians without accountability or any obligation to explain their actions,” the organisation said.

Africa4Palestine said reports like this are one of the few tools available to hold Israel accountable for what it sees as crimes under international law.

Meanwhile, the South African Zionist Federation (SAZF), has condemned the report, accusing the UN of deep bias.

SAZF national spokesperson, Rolene Marks, said the Commission’s findings cannot be trusted, and alleged that international law expert Navi Pillay, who authored the report, is anti-Israel and anti-Semitic.

Israel has consistently denied all allegations of genocide and claims that its military actions in Gaza are aimed at dismantling Hamas, which it considers a terrorist organisation.

“Our report tells the story of the plundering of a nation: corruption is not incidental, it is the engine of #SouthSudan’s decline.”

New report by a human rights commission shows how systemic government corruption is fuelling a human rights crisis in 🇸🇸. https://t.co/f7qWGI9Dv1 pic.twitter.com/J6sjBaE5jf

— United Nations Geneva (@UNGeneva) September 16, 2025

The UN Human Rights Council report makes it extremely clear: Israel is committing genocide and we’re all complicit. pic.twitter.com/m6X6k12225

— Alex 🇵🇸 (@foleywoley) September 16, 2025

“The three most damning paragraphs in the UN Report alleging that Israel is perpetrating genocide in Gaza: Siege starvation, attacks on health care, direct targeting of children as patterns that cannot be explained except if group destruction is one animating purpose.” pic.twitter.com/eunFpYDCX6

— Samantha Asumadu (@SamanthaAsumadu) September 17, 2025