WASHINGTON — Analysts say more African countries may recall their diplomats from Israel as a sign of discontentment with the nation’s continuous bombardment of the Gaza Strip following the October 7 attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas.
So far, two African nations — South Africa and Chad — have withdrawn their respective diplomats from Israel joining global calls for a cease-fire in the region.
The White House said last week that Israel would start to implement four-hour daily pauses in its military operation against Hamas in areas of northern Gaza. However, Israel has rejected calls for a total cease-fire.
Hennie Strydom, a professor of international law at the University of Johannesburg, said the African nations’ decision to withdraw their diplomats from Israel indicates a desire to avoid “further contact or relations with Israel at (this) point in time.”
Strydom says while there is a possibility other African nations may follow in the footsteps of South Africa and Chad, such actions are unlikely to alter “the course of events” or have a significant impact on the conflict.
“They (African states) have no leverage over Israel, or Hamas for that matter,” he said. “For instance, and just by way of example, if the United States of America has decided to withdraw its ambassador, that’s a totally different story, and I can tell that Israel is taking notice of what’s going on here.”
Western allies — including the United States, Britain and the European Union — have supported Israel’s efforts to defeat militant groups in the region.
African nations such as Kenya, Ghana and Rwanda have also backed Israel.
The concerns of African countries are not primarily about the initial actions taken against Hamas, Strydom said, but the perceived “overreach of the Israeli action.”
“(Recalling diplomats) indicate dissatisfaction or discontent with the situation. It’s just a symbolic action that is taken, but it can also be in order to get more information on what’s happening on the ground.”
South Africa’s minister for International Relations and Cooperation, Naledi Pandor, said last week the withdrawal of the country’s diplomats in Israel is “normal practice” and aimed at reassessing its relations with the nation in the wake of rising civilian casualties in Palestinian territories.
She said South Africa is “extremely concerned at the continued killing of children and innocent civilians.”
According to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, more than 11,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks. Israel has maintained it is only targeting Hamas and other militant groups. The Israeli Foreign Ministry says 1,200 people were killed in the October 7 Hamas attack, a toll recently revised from 1,400.
Chad — the landlocked north-central African country of more than 17 million people — recalled its chargé d’affaires, or senior diplomat, to Israel last week for “consultation” over the conflict in Gaza, CNN reported.
A statement posted to the Chadian presidency website said the action was taken in “indignation” at the Israeli-Hamas conflict.
“Chad condemns the loss of human lives of many innocent civilians and calls for a cease-fire leading to a lasting solution to the Palestinian question,” the statement read.
In late October, Libya’s Tripoli-based parliament called for the departure of ambassadors from countries that “support” Israel to leave the North African nation, threatening to cut energy supplies if “massacres” against Palestinians did not stop.
In the wake of the Israeli-Hamas war, several pro-Palestinian protests have been held in Africa — some in Egypt, Tunisia, South Africa, Ghana and Senegal.
Much of Europe, the U.S. and Asia have also witnessed protests in solidarity with Palestinians.
Simon Rynn, a senior research fellow in charge of African security at London-based Royal United Security Institute, or RUSI, says the diplomatic withdrawal by South Africa and Chad indicate a clear perspective by some Africa states on the conflict.
“In Libya, protests broke out in August at mere reports of contact with Israel. The U.N.-backed government’s (was) minister fired in August after it emerged that she had met with the Israeli foreign minister. Libya doesn’t recognize the state of Israel,” Rynn said.
He says other African states are expected to toe the line of South Africa and Chad, citing the changing sentiment and broader critique over Israel’s war against Hamas.
“Whatever sympathy may have existed around October 7 appears to have been overtaken by the speed and scale of the death toll in Gaza,” Rynn said.
He says in the likelihood of a cease-fire in the medium-term, Africa-Israel diplomatic relations will probably revert to the previous state of affairs.
The African Union did not respond to VOA’s request for comment on the two diplomatic withdrawals.
Other countries that have pulled their ambassadors from Israel include Bolivia, Bahrain, Honduras, Colombia, Chile, Turkey and Jordan.
Some information in this story came from Reuters.
Source link : https://www.voaafrica.com/amp/after-chad-south-africa-recall-diplomats-from-israel-will-others-follow-/7349771.html
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Publish date : 2023-11-13 08:00:00
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