African Union, several regional countries welcome Gaza truce

MOGADISHU, Somalia 

Several African countries and the continental body the African Union on Thursday welcomed a cease-fire agreement between Israel and the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.

“I wish to commend the crucial role played by Qatar, Egypt & the United States,” said African Union Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat.

He said the continental body calls for the immediate and full implementation of the agreement and wishes that justice and peace prevail for the people of Palestine.

Namibia’s President Nangolo Mbumba also hailed the agreement.

“I welcome the permanent ceasefire announced by the State of Qatar, which marks an extremely significant and overdue moment for the occupied people of Gaza, who have endured agonizing misery. Since the 7th of October 2023, the people of Gaza have experienced gruesome atrocities leading to the loss of tens of thousands of innocent lives, untold destruction of civilian infrastructure and flagrant violations of international humanitarian law,” he wrote on X.

Mbumba said the cease-fire is an opportunity for the people of Gaza to return to their land and start the process of rebuilding and reconstruction.

“More importantly, I hope that the ceasefire will open a new opportunity for enduring peace in the Middle East." he added.

Welcoming the pact, South Africa called 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," a Foreign Ministry statement said.

It said the cease-fire "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 cease-fire, and that illegal settlement expansion is halted," it added.

South Africa, which dragged Israel to the ICJ over Gaza, said the successive rulings and provisional measures of the top UN court "must be adhered to by the occupying power. International law and humanitarian law must be respected and upheld."

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud also commended the efforts of Qatar, Egypt and the US in brokering the agreement.

Mohamud emphasized the importance of sustaining the cease-fire and called on the international community to expedite the delivery of urgent humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.

“With this agreement, I stress the need for collective efforts to stabilize the ceasefire and prioritize the swift provision of humanitarian assistance to alleviate the suffering in Gaza,” he said in a statement issued by the presidency.

The Horn of Africa country reaffirmed its commitment to supporting peace and reiterated its stance on the Palestinian cause, advocating for a just and comprehensive solution.

Mahmoud underscored the necessity of establishing an independent and sovereign Palestinian state based on the two-state solution.

On Wednesday, Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani announced the success of mediators in reaching a cease-fire agreement in the Gaza Strip, noting that its implementation will begin this Sunday.

The announcement came on the 467th day of Israel's genocide in Gaza, which has killed and injured over 156,000 Palestinians, the majority of whom are women and children.

The war has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis that has claimed the lives of many elderly people and children in one of the worst global humanitarian disasters ever.

*Additional reporting by Riyaz ul Khaliq in Istanbul and Hassan Isilow in Johannesburg