The government has condemned the bombing of a hospital in Gaza that killed 500 people, including women and children, saying it constitute a war crime.
It said the targeting of civilians was against international law and the bombing by Israel of a hospital should be condemned by the international community.
UN chief Antonio Guterres and various human rights organisations said the bombing of the hospital was abhorrent.
The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) said on Wednesday just as the attack by Hamas on civilians in Israel was abhorrent, it said it condemned the targeting of civilians by Israel in a hospital.
The department said the Gaza Strip was already under severe pressure with the cutting off of supplies by Israel.
The bombing has added more misery to the people of Gaza.
“The bombing of the Ahli Arab Baptist hospital in Gaza is the most blatant violation of international humanitarian law. Doctors are operating without anaesthetics and do not have the medical equipment or supplies to treat the victims.
“The suffering of children and their parents are unspeakable and unfathomable in this day and age, and there must be consequences for these actions, otherwise the international structures established to maintain international peace and security have utterly failed.
“The al-Ahli Baptist hospital which was bombed on Tuesday night is one of 22 hospitals in northern Gaza which were ordered by the Israeli military to evacuate their patients and staff within 24 hours or be responsible for the consequences.
“The Israeli evacuation order drew swift condemnation from the World Health Organization and other UN agencies. The World Health Organization said the 22 hospitals were treating more than 2,000 patients in northern Gaza, and the forced evacuation of patients and health workers would further worsen the current humanitarian and public health catastrophe and was tantamount to a death sentence,” said Dirco.
It added that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency said there were more than 4,000 people who were sheltering in the hospital when Israel bombed it.
This follows the destruction of their homes by Israel’s airstrikes in the last two weeks.
US President Joe Biden was in the Middle East to meet with various leaders in the region.
His visit comes after his Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in the region a few days ago when met with different leaders.
siyabonga.mkhwanazi@inl.co.za
Politics