Former President Nelson Mandela’s grandson, Mandla Mandela, has urged the South African government to take tougher action against Israel.

His remarks come after the return of South African Global Sumud Flotilla activists from Jordan, who were abducted by Israeli forces while en route to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid and protest the ongoing blockade.

Speaking at a press conference at OR Tambo International Airport, Mandela says all entities supporting Israel should face arrest.

“We call on our government, which has been able to take apartheid Israel to the ICJ and ICC … We call on you to arrest all those who are complacent in fueling the genocide and selling coal to apartheid Israel. We call on the government, with immediate effect, to stop any coal that has been exported to apartheid Israel.”

He adds, “We call on the government to ensure that all those who participated in the genocide in apartheid Israel, who have enabled the IOF to carry on its genocide and systematic ethnic cleansing of Palestinians to be arrested and prosecuted.”

‘Brutal’

South African activist Dr Fatima Hendricks has described the detention experience she and others endured at the hands of Israeli forces as brutal.

Hendricks shared her account of events. “These are Zionist forces that know nothing but brutal violence. They came into our room, attacked two women outside our door – we were trying to get mattresses into our rooms. They came back with 35 approximately 35 soldiers. We had rifles pointed at our foreheads, backed against the room to take out, forcibly, two of our comrades to solitary confinement.”

‘Won’t stop until genocide ends’

Despite the harrowing experience, another activist, Zaheera Soomar says that they will not stop until the genocide has ended.

“I don’t think any of us has a single regret joining the Global Sumud Flotilla. It doesn’t mean it was easy; it was a very difficult journey. It’s nothing in comparison to what the people of Gaza face every single minute of everyday. Even at our hardest moments, this is exactly where we wanted to be in the moment and this was the mission we wanted to be on. We will commit to another mission again. Because until the genocide has ended, we will not stop.”

Sophie Mokoena and Chriselda Lewis captured these moments at the OR Tambo Airport on Wednesday.

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