Nelson Mandela frequently declared that "Palestine was the greatest moral issue of our time". After we toppled the Apartheid regime in 1994, he went further, saying "We South Africans cannot consider ourselves free until the Palestinian People are free".
Millions of us in South Africa collectively recoiled from Israel's gruesome assault on the people of Gaza during those 51 nightmarish days of "Operation Protective Edge" and the attendant ongoing cruelty in the West Bank. As the dust settled, we were left shocked beyond belief as we witnessed a community of 1.8 million in ruins; Khozaa, Shujaiyya, Beit Hanoun, with entire families and neighbourhoods, gone.
According to the United Nations, 2,131 Palestinians were killed during Israel's offensive. Of those 501 were children, with 70 percent under 12.
The Ministry of Health in Gaza recorded 10,918 people injured including 3,312 children and 2,120 women. According to the United Nations, 244 schools were shelled and one used as a military base by Israeli soldiers. Al Mezan human rights organisation documented at least 10,920 houses damaged or destroyed of which 2,853 were completely flattened. Eight hospitals - resulting in six being taken out of service - 46 NGOs, 50 fishing boats, 161 mosques, and 244 vehicles were also hit.
Israel and its accomplices must not be allowed to get away with the extermination of a people, writes Kasrils [EPA]
