Namibian ambassador to the United Nations (UN) Neville Gertze has raised concerns over the Security Council’s failure to intervene in the ongoing war between Israel and militant Palestinian group Hamas.
In his address to the UN earlier this week, Gertze also came out thrashing Israel for its indiscriminate attacks on civilians, including children, in Gaza, where air strikes have left death and destruction.
By yesterday, the death toll in Gaza rose to more than 7 000 people, including nearly 3 000 children, Palestinian officials said.
Al Jazeera also reported that Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, told members of the Security Council the war on Gaza has “nothing to do with the Palestinians”, as it’s all about the Hamas attack on 7 October, which began with a rocket barrage.
According to official Israeli sources, some 1 400 people have been killed in Israel.
UN health agency chief Tedros Ghebreyesus earlier this week issued a new appeal for “sustained safe passage” for medical essentials and fuel to keep health facilities open in Gaza.
Ghebreyesus, along with a growing list of world leaders, are calling for an immediate ceasefire.
“Our commitment to international law and human rights has become increasingly selective given that despite the nearly 80-year-old war between Palestine and Israel, there is still a refusal to acknowledge the prolonged occupation, settlement expansion and annexation as the root cause of the crisis,” Gertze said.
He said while there have been concerns over Israel seeing the attack on Palestine as defending themselves, Palestinians see the war as a way of defending their territorial integrity and independence.
“UN reports give credence to the fact that there’s a tendency to use policies to justify territorial expansion and security concerns as a pretext to justify collective punishment against an entire population.
“The use of disproportionate force against civilians, including children, should be where we draw the line. Anything short of this is a tacit confirmation that might is right.
“The alarming violence over several decades and specifically in 2023 demonstrates the urgent need and the root causes of the conflict, with only confining ourselves to 7 October as a reference point for this conflict,” the Namibian diplomat said.
He said Israel continues to implement policies that are contrary to humanitarian law and Security Council resolutions in attacking Hamas.
“Namibia calls for an immediate cessation of this brutal conflict. Namibia condemns the abhorrent attacks on innocent civilians and the military onslaught with the objective of obliterating innocent civilians amounting to a genocide,” Gertze said.
‘PROUD
MOMENT’
Self-exiled academic Joseph Dieshco described the speech Gertze delivered earlier this week as a proud moment that saw the country articulating its position on the ongoing war well.
“There are times when as a Namibian one feels small and grateful to be one. Listening to ambassador Neville Gertze articulate in the United Nations chamber the position of the only government we call ours, was indeed a proud moment.
“It was truly like watching Christine Mboma cruising past the finishing line somewhere in the world! Namibia’s position on the unfortunate genocide in the Middle East is indeed a textbook statement on the efficacy of international law,” Diescho said.
He said Gertze’ articulation of Namibia’s foreign policy is what is expected from the government.
“Thank you, brother ambassador Gerttze. Thank you, president Geingob, for standing firm on this matter and making us all proud as a ‘child of international solidarity’, even if other nations differ from us.
“There is never a wrong time to do the right thing! Many thanks,” Diescho said.
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