Cape Town — South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, praised the efforts of South Africa’s legal team for the way they represented the country at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
South Africa was the first country to step up and try and take the Israelis to court following the devastating attacks on innocent civilians in Palestine and Gaza. The legal team presented a strong case yesterday at The Hague in what could prove to be a historic moment during the Gaza clashes.
According to IOL, Ramaphosa praised the team and said how proud he was to be a South African after the presentation.
“I must say that I have never felt as proud as I felt today when our legal team was arguing our case in the Hague and I never felt as proud when I see Ronald Lamola the son of this province [Mpumalanga] standing there in that court introducing our case,” Ramaphosa said.
“I am told that the Palestinians who were there, many of them cried because they have a sense that South Africa is probably the only country that is standing by them through these trials and tribulations,” he added.
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While the team presented their case at The Hague, Ramaphosa was at the ANC Women’s League Umanyano event in Mbombela, Mpumalanga. He said that former president, Nelson Mandela, set the tone for freedom in Palestine and he knew the country was bound to act.
“Our freedom will never be complete until the freedom of Palestinians is also attained, we felt duty bound to launch the court case,” he said.
SABC News reported Justice Minister Ronald Lamola said South Africa has brought Israel before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to stop the suffering of Palestinians.
“The violence and the destruction in Palestine and Israel did not begin on the 07th of October 2023. The Palestinians have experienced systemic oppression and violence for the last 76 years. On the Gaza Strip, at least since 2004, Israel continues to exercise control over the airspace territorial, waters land crossings, water, electricity and civilian infrastructure,” Lamola said.
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
