The ANC stressed its support for Palestine during its three-day National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting held in Boksburg.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, along with other NEC members, showed a unified front, wearing black attire and carrying Palestinian flags to symbolise their solidarity.
Voicing condolences to both Israel and Palestine, Ramaphosa especially emphasised the ANC’s stance alongside the Palestinian people amidst the tensions in the Middle East.
He drew similarities between the ANC’s anti-apartheid struggle and the Palestinians’ long-standing opposition against what he and many others label an apartheid state in Israel.
“We have a full understanding of how the people of Palestine have taken up this issue because they are people who have been under occupation for almost 75 years,” Ramaphosa said.
Ramaphosa reflected gravely on the Israeli government’s directive for 1.1 million Gaza residents to evacuate, which he criticised as a move with bad implications for genocide, particularly given the closure of numerous exit routes from Palestine.
The South African President emphasised the ANC’s belief in a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine.
Ramaphosa argued, “We have always pledged our solidarity, and have always insisted that the only solution, especially with the issues of Palestine, is a two-state solution.”
The ANC’s NEC meeting concludes on Monday.
Pictured above: Cyril Ramaphosa
