Palestinian resistance groups have called upon all members of the African Union (AU) to reconsider last year’s decision to grant Israel an observer status at the pan-African bloc, and join forces in order to revoke the move.
“The occupying regime has long practiced state terrorism, and systematically commits all kinds of crimes against the Palestinian people, their territories, and holy sites. It enacts a policy of ethnic cleansing and racial discrimination as documented by many international human rights organizations,” the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, said in a statement on Friday.
It stressed, “Israel violates international law as well as international humanitarian law, and refuses to implement dozens of resolutions or to abide by recommendations put forward by relevant United Nations committees.”
“Granting membership, or even an observer status, to Israel constitutes a flagrant violation of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights in addition to the principles and statute of the AU, which reject racism and demand decolonization and the right to self-determination,” the statement pointed out.
Hamas finally called on all freedom-loving Africans to voice solidarity with the Palestinian nation, and compel African leaders to revoke Israel’s observer status at the AU, whose principles and objectives stipulate the fight against colonialism and racial discrimination.
The Ramallah-based Fatah movement also called on African states to prioritize Israel’s expulsion from the continental body during the 35th African Union (AU) Heads of State Summit in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Abba, which is slated for February 5 and 6.
Yamin Qadbah, a spokesman for the movement, also urged African rulers to use the event as an opportunity to illustrate the principles and foundations of solidarity between nations.
He also praised Algeria’s efforts aimed at the revocation of Israel’s observer status at the African Union.
Algeria: Israel’s AU observer status ‘huge mistake’
Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra condemned the decision by the African Union (AU) to grant Israel an observer status at the bloc as a “huge mistake.”
He told the Qatari Arabic-language Al-Jazeera television network that his country had no role in the adoption of the measure.
“The first mistake was that the decision to grant Israel observer status at the AU was taken without any consultation with its member states. Secondly, there exist disagreements among AU member states on the matter,” Lamamra noted.
He denounced Israel’s observer status, saying, “If previous consultations [among AU member states] had taken place, the decision would have certainly not been taken.”
“This is a bad thing for the African Union and it could jeopardize solidarity among the member states,” Lamamra said.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is leading a continental campaign to cancel Israel’s status as an accredited observer at the African Union (AU).
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Israel was accepted as an observer to the AU by the chairperson of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat in August last year
But South Africa in particular, leading the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and Algeria, leading some African members of the Arab League, objected to Faki’s decision.
South African International Relations and Cooperation Minister Naledi Pandor complained at the time that the AU Commission had taken this “unjust and unwarranted decision… unilaterally without consultation with its member states.”
The decision was inexplicable as the AU had already strenuously objected to Israel’s occupation of Palestine, which “offends the letter and spirit of the Charter of the AU… especially on issues relating to self-determination and decolonization,” she highlighted.
“The world continues to witness some of the most horrific scenes of brutality and violence exercised against Palestinians living in the Occupied Palestinian Territory,” Pandor said.
Experts say Israel’s observer status is largely seen as part of the Tel Aviv regime’s continued campaign to normalize ties in Africa.
Several African countries, including Botswana, South Africa, Namibia, and Algeria, have already opposed Israel’s accreditation.
They say AU member states were not consulted and the decision is in opposition to the body’s support for the Palestinian cause.
Pro-Palestine language is typically featured in statements delivered at the AU’s annual summits. Palestine already has observer status at the African Union.
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