Israel recalls its ambassador from South Africa
Israel has recalled its ambassador in South Africa “for consultations”, Israel’s foreign ministry has said.
It follows the “latest South African statements” on Israel, ministry spokesperson, Lior Haiat, said on X without giving specifics.
South Africa has been highly critical of Israel’s military operation in Gaza.
On Monday, it urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue an arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by mid-December.
Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, said failure to do so would signal a “total failure” of global governance.
The recall of Israeli Ambassador, Eliav Belotserkovsky, came just before South Africa began hosting a virtual summit of the Brics group of nations, which includes China and Russia, on the Israel-Hamas war.
The meeting, chaired by South Africa’s President, Cyril Ramaphosa, hopes to draw up a common response to the conflict.
In his opening remarks, Mr Ramaphosa denounced what he called the collective punishment of Palestinian civilians.
Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin, \accused the US of blocking international efforts to bring peace to the Middle East.
—BBC
