By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Former president Thabo Mbeki has reiterated calls for a concentrated effort and two-state solution as the war between Israel and Hamas has been ongoing for over 100 days.
Mbeki’s comment comes just days after South Africa argued its case against Israel at the International Court of Justice – accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians.
It presented its case on Thursday, asking the ICJ to order an immediate halt to Israeli military operations in Gaza.
Israel continues to respond to Hamas’ unprecedented attack on its people, bombarding Gaza and preparing for a ground offensive.
Mbeki reiterated the need for a two-state solution.
“The fighting should stop, and we need to get back to the negotiations about the future with everybody, starting with the Palestinians,” Mbeki said.
“Everybody agreed that we need a two-state solution. Now, there is only one state, and the other one doesn’t exist and that one state that has existed has been doing many things to make it impossible for the emergence of the second state. It’s a prescription for conflict inevitably and there will always be conflict in a situation like that.”
President Thabo Mbeki on the Israel-Palestine Conflict. pic.twitter.com/oIlJJo9GuI
— Thabo Mbeki Foundation (@TMFoundation_) January 15, 2024
Deadly violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and along Israel’s border with Lebanon, as well as fighting between US forces and Iran-backed Yemeni rebels in the Red Sea, have raised fears of an escalation beyond the Gaza Strip.
The war, sparked by Palestinian attacks on Israel, has created a humanitarian catastrophe for the 2.4 million people in the besieged strip, the United Nations and aid groups warn, and reduced much of the territory to rubble.
The health ministry in Gaza, ruled by Hamas since 2007, reported more than 60 “martyrs” and dozens more wounded overnight in what the group’s media office described as “intense” Israeli bombardment across Gaza.
Hamas’s October 7 attack that triggered the war resulted in about 1,140 deaths in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.
The militants also seized about 250 hostages, 132 of whom Israel says remain in Gaza, including at least 25 believed to have been killed.
Vowing to destroy Hamas, Israel launched a relentless military campaign that has killed at least 24,100 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the territory’s health ministry.