By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The South African Council of Churches (SACC) delegation of religious leaders returned to South Africa on Thursday after spending the last eight days in Palestine as part of a solidarity mission with Palestinians.
Reverend Frank Chikane and SACC Bishop Malusi Mpumlwana were among the group of prominent clerics who were part of the delegation.
The delegation’s pilgrimage of solidarity with Palestinians was organised by Kairos Southern Africa in collaboration with Kairos Palestine.
In a press conference at Johannesburg’s OR Tambo International Airport, Chikane said the group had met Christian leaders in that region and interacted with civilians and people from other faiths. The group visited Jerusalem and Tel Aviv as well.
Chikane expressed his disapproval of the travel restrictions and regulations that are in place.
“Even when you get a taxi to go to the airport, the number plates [which are valid] ends here beyond a certain gate. You then need another car with a different number plate and colour code to be able to drive through Jerusalem,” Chikane said.
Chikane claimed that he had witnessed a concerning episode of what he considers to have been a case of human rights abuse when one of the members of the Christian delegation almost being stripped naked by Israeli authorities during a search.
“Palestinian authorities cannot arrest an Israeli, but they can arrest Palestinians. They can arrest the Palestinians and take them to Israel and that was the experience.”
“When you are in that place, you know what to do. I am giving you a sense of the state for the Palestinian people,” Chikane said.
Chikane has denied criticism that their mission was one-dimensional. He said their aim was to go and find out the truth of the matter.
He said as religious leaders they wanted to have a positive impact on the Israeli and American leaders to stop the war. He has warned that the US support for Israel has been a strategic mistake.
Chikane has urged world leaders to work towards resolving the crisis in Gaza. He said the world would pay a huge price for the genocide taking place in the region.
In Bethlehem, Palestinian Christians have cancelled festivities and public Christmas celebrations due to the ongoing conflict.
The conflict between Hamas and Israel intensified in October after the militant group attacked Israel.
Thousands have been killed on both sides in the past few weeks.
“[The] Israeli army has dropped more that 25 thousand tons of explosives on Gaza,” said Mpumlwana. “It has systematically targetted schools, hospitals, mosques. This is to make the point for what seems to be ethnic cleansing.”