Pretoria declared Israel’s acting ambassador persona non grata over ‘a series of unacceptable violations of diplomatic norms’
By Mevlut Ozkan
ISTANBUL (AA) – The US has criticised South Africa’s decision to expel Israel’s acting ambassador, Ariel Seidman, calling it a “poor foreign policy choice.”
Yet, eleven months ago, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that South Africa’s ambassador to the US Ebrahim Rasool was “no longer welcome” in the US, accusing him of being a “race-bating politician who hates America”. Rasool was expelled barely two months after he arrived in Washington.
In a post on social media company X, US State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said: “South Africa’s recent decision to expel Israel’s top diplomat is another example of its poor foreign policy choices”.
Pigott accused Pretoria of expelling Seidman for “calling out” the African National Congress party’s alleged ties to Hamas and “other antisemitic radicals,” arguing that the move prioritises “grievance politics over the good of South Africa and its citizens”.
The South African Foreign Ministry on Friday announced that Seidman had been declared persona non grata over “a series of unacceptable violations of diplomatic norms and practice which pose a direct challenge to South Africa’s sovereignty”, including remarks deemed insulting to President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Pretoria also gave Seidman 72 hours to leave the country.
In a tit-for-tat response on the same day, Tel Aviv declared South Africa’s senior diplomatic representative persona non grata, ordering him to leave the country within 72 hours.
Seidman has served as Israel’s charge d’affaires since November 2023, when Israel recalled its ambassador after South Africa withdrew its diplomats from Tel Aviv over Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza.
South Africa, which maintains relations with both Israel and Palestine, filed a case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in December 2023, accusing it of violating its obligations under the Genocide Convention in its actions against Palestinians in Gaza.
Since then, the court has issued a series of provisional measures ordering Israel to take steps to prevent acts of genocide.
More than 71 000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed and over 171 000 others injured in the Israeli war since October 2023, with the number increase as Israel continues it genocidal actions. -Anadulo Agency
