Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pennsylvania, criticized South Africa for filing a genocide lawsuit against Israel at the United Nations' International Court of Justice, saying African countries should focus on quelling unrest on their continent. Stated.
The International Court of Justice in the Netherlands was scheduled to hold oral arguments on Thursday in a case filed by South Africa in late December accusing Israel of genocide.
“Who are they really fighting?” Fetterman said about Hamas terrorists Wednesday while speaking at an Orthodox Union luncheon in Washington, D.C. “It's a bunch of cowards. They hide in tunnels, they hide behind civilians, they attack children and women, they kill them, they mutilate them. And they do it. Stop talking about proportionality about it. They. took their best shot on October 7th, and they would have killed many more if they had done it.”
“Now we're also talking about genocide,” Fetterman continued. “And now South Africa…has a court case of that kind. Perhaps South Africa should sit on this court case when they are talking about criticizing the actions of other countries. Sit down!”
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Senator John Fetterman condemned South Africa's genocide against Israel. (Ting Sheng/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The Associated Press reported in 2020 that white South African farmers and organizations representing them are calling for farm murder to be made a priority crime, but the South African government says white farmers are being targeted because of their race. He insisted that the violence was racially discriminatory. This is a result of South Africa's high crime rate.
South Africa has one of the highest crime statistics in the world. Much of South Africa's best farmland is now owned by white farmers, as a result of black farmers being evicted when South Africa was ruled by the white minority. Although South Africa now has majority rule, land ownership remains a contentious issue, with political parties such as the left-wing Economic Freedom Fighters mobilizing their supporters to expropriate white-owned land for free. They are calling on the government to return the children to black families.
Mr. Fetterman's office said he did not address the issue of white farmers. “My point was this: South Africa should instead focus on its own spiraling humanitarian crisis, such as Sudan, where widespread atrocities have displaced more than seven million people,” the senator said in a statement. ” he said.
Farm attacks in South Africa jumped 21% in the third quarter of 2023 compared to the previous quarter, according to non-profit civil rights organization Afriforum. AfriForum's Community Safety Unit recorded 88 farm attacks from July to September 2023, including 13 farm murders.
The group said 73 farm attacks, including 23 murders, were recorded in the second quarter from April to June.
Mr. Fetterman, a Democrat who drew heavy criticism from conservatives during his campaign and after his victory over Dr. Mehmet Oz in 2022, has recently gained support from conservatives as well as leftists over his stance on Israel. is causing a backlash.
“Fetterman 180 is the most astonishing development in political history,” conservative lawyer Marina Medvin wrote on X, sharing a clip of it.
“John Fetterman is the only politician with the stones to stand up to radicals in his own camp, and that's something to be admired,” Harrison Crank wrote to his 244,000 followers. Reconstructed clip originally posted on X by Dovi Safia.
The hearing in South Africa's genocide case against Israel began on January 11, 2024 at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague, Netherlands. (Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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In opening statements Thursday, South African lawyers said the Gaza war is part of Israel's decades-long oppression of the Palestinian people. South Africa is seeking a binding preliminary order forcing Israel to cease military operations in Gaza.
The Palestinian Health Ministry, run by Hamas, claims more than 23,000 people have been killed and does not distinguish between civilian and combatant casualties.
Adira Hashim, a South African lawyer, said: “While genocide cannot be declared in advance, this court incontrovertibly demonstrates a pattern of behavior and associated intent that justifies a legitimate claim of genocidal acts.'' “I have the benefit of the evidence of the past 13 weeks,” he told the judge. The audience had gathered in a packed ornate room at the Peace Palace in The Hague, the Associated Press reported. “Nothing but an order from this court can stop the suffering.”
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators in support of South Africa's landmark “genocide” lawsuit against Israel outside the High Court in Cape Town, January 11, 2024. (Roger Bosch/AFP via Getty Images)
But Israel says it is fighting a fierce enemy in the Gaza Strip, which carried out the deadliest attack in Israel's history on October 7, killing more than 1,200 people, and insists it is following international law and doing everything in its power. ing. Avoid harm to civilians. The government says the terrorist organization that controlled Gaza is hiding in residential areas and blames Hamas for the high number of casualties.
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Ahead of the proceedings in The Hague, hundreds of pro-Israel demonstrators held a banner near the courthouse that read “Let them go home,” referring to the hostages held by Hamas since October 7. marched. However, South Africa reportedly did not heed this opinion. Israel's claim is that the Jewish state intentionally committed the genocide.
“The scale of the destruction in Gaza, the targeting of families and civilians, the fact that this is a war against children, all make it clear that genocidal intentions are understood and carried out. The clearly expressed intention is the destruction of Palestinian life,” lawyer Thembeka Nukukaitobi said, according to the Associated Press. “What kind of state would admit genocidal intent? But the distinguishing feature of this case is not the silence itself, but the repeated repetition of genocidal speech in all areas of the State of Israel.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
