South Africa welcomes the ceasefire agreement reached between Israel and Hamas after 15 months of Israel’s genocidal onslaught on Gaza after Hamas and other armed groups launched an attack on Israel.

South Africa calls for the implementation of a just and lasting peace that ensures the human rights of both Palestinians and Israelis are protected and promoted. The ceasefire agreement is a crucial first step toward ending the severe humanitarian crisis faced by the 2.3 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which the International Court of Justice (ICJ) has deemed to be plausibly genocidal.

The ceasefire must lay the basis for a just peace which should include the establishment of a contiguous, independent, and viable Palestinian state. Palestinian sovereignty and territorial integrity must be upheld. It is imperative that no land is annexed in either Gaza or the West Bank following the ceasefire, and that illegal settlement expansion is halted.

In accordance with the successive rulings of the ICJ, the provisional measures prescribed by the ICJ must be adhered to by the occupying power. International law and humanitarian law must be respected and upheld.

Immediate and massive humanitarian aid is urgently needed to provide relief to civilians in Gaza. All obstacles to the delivery of humanitarian aid must be lifted immediately and unconditionally, allowing civilians unrestricted access to essential food, water, shelter, and healthcare.

ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND COOPERATION

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