THE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD, MILITANT ISLAM AND QATAR

The power of money to influence, corrupt and ultimately erode the liberal western way of life.

By Neville Berman

(Warning from the writer: There may be incidents referred to below that you may find disturbing)

This article is not about nuclear war, global warming or a strain of some unknown virus that could result in the destruction of mankind. Instead, it is aimed at highlighting the actual greatest current threat facing the liberal Western way of life. Forget about Russia, China or communism as the major threats facing the West. The cold war is over. Russia is clearly no longer the power that Vladimir Putin thought it was when he ordered the Russian army to invade Ukraine. China might be an economic competitor to American financial dominance, but China relies on the markets in the West to ensure that its export-based economy can bring prosperity to China. It would be a strategic mistake for China to believe that its exports will not suffer if it wages war against the West.

The First World War was billed as “the war to end all wars”. It ended with a German surrender, and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire that had ruled large parts of the Middle East for nearly 400 years. The terms of the surrender agreement did not bring peace to Europe, and the Muslim community in the Middle East was plunged into turmoil.

In 1928, Hassan al-Banna started a Sunni Muslim organization in Egypt called the Muslim Brotherhood. He stated the following:

“The nature of Islam is to dominate and not to be dominated, to impose its law on all nations and to extend its power to the entire planet.”

**The Enforcer**. Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, one of the largest and most influential global Islamist movements, Hassan al-Banna encouraged Egyptians to abandon Western customs and argued that the state should enforce Islamic public morality.

He rejected nationalism, and regarded all Muslims as members of a single Islamic movement that needed to establish Islamic rule across the world. Its core message was to subjugate the world to Sharia law by means of Jihad. He maintained that Jihad is an obligation from Allah on every Muslim, and that a guaranteed way to heaven was to die fighting for the cause of Islam. Partly due to the social activities in helping the poor, and partly due to the support from the Imams in the Mosques, membership in the Brotherhood grew rapidly across the Arab world. The Egyptian government recognized the threat that the Brotherhood posed to its rule, and in 1949, Hassan al-Banna was assassinated by agents of the Egyptian secret police. Despite his death, the message of the Muslim Brotherhood still resonates with millions of Muslims.

There are two significant changes that have now elevated the threat posed by the Muslim Brotherhood. The first involves the change in the financial position of the major oil and gas exporting countries in the Middle East, and the second involves the huge increase of the number of Muslims now living in the West.

The world runs on oil and gas and Saudi Arabia is the world’s number 1 exporter of oil, and Qatar is the second largest exporter of Liquefied Natural Gas. (LNG) The profits from the sale of these commodities have transformed these previously poverty-stricken countries into modern financial powerhouses. They are now using their financial power to undermine the West, and promote the growth of Islam across the world.

The second important factor is that the liberal West decided to promote a policy of human rights for mankind. The idea of prosperity through diversity, multiculturalism, and equal opportunity, led to the West opening its borders to immigration. Millions of immigrants from poor countries with little or no prospects, moved to the liberal Western world in the hope of finding a better life for themselves and their families. The vast majority of them lack marketable skills, and are impecunious. They do not share the same culture, religion, language or values of the countries that they have immigrated to. The result is that Europe and America now have sizable immigrant and Muslim populations. Saudi Arabia and Qatar have financed Mosques and Islamic cultural centers all across the world to serve the Muslim immigrant communities. The Imams in these institutions have radicalized tens of thousands of their followers to oppose the values of the West, and to see themselves as part of the army of Islam that aims to control the world.

The greatest threat facing the Western world at present is militant Islam coupled with the support that it is receiving from Qatar and other Middle Eastern countries. (The role of Iran and Saudi Arabia as a threat to the West will be presented in a follow up article.)

Qatar is a sovereign country surrounded by the Persian Gulf. It has a small land border that can be used to cross into Saudi Arabia. It has been ruled by the Al Thani family since the mid-19^th century. There are approximately 3 million people living in Qatar, of which about 320,000 are Qatari citizens. All the rest are expatriates and guest workers with almost no rights in the country. Qatar has donated billions of dollars to Hamas, which is an affiliate of the Muslim Brotherhood.

**All in the Family**. Qatar, a small Gulf country with enormous global influence, has been ruled by the **Al Thani** family since the mid-19^th century.

Qatar has the same aims as Al-Qaeda, but is much smarter in its strategy. Instead of blowing up buildings in the West and causing a military retaliation, Qatar is buying the buildings and using its financial resources to gain influence. The Al-Jazeera TV channel is financed by the rulers of Qatar. It broadcasts 24/7 in Arabic and English to 430 million households worldwide. It has radicalized millions of its viewers to hate and despise the West and is laying the seeds of an Islamic takeover of the West.

Qatar has spent billions on financing the building of Middle Eastern departments on all the major American university campuses. Only professors with a track record of being anti-Israel are hired. Their aim is to train the future leaders of America to oppose the values and foundational pillars of Western civilization, and especially to oppose Israel. The end result can be seen in well financed and organized protests against Israel on American campuses and across the Western world.

**Gift or Graft?** Seeming oblivious to the image of Qatar buying influence at the highest level of the US administration, President Donald Trump celebrates the new Qatari-gifted ‘Air Force One’ before its initial voyage to North Dakota, saying the U.S. “should be very proud” of the new luxury jet.(AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Qatar has used its enormous wealth to corrupt the world. They bought the right to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. They are also buying influence within the American administration. Steve Witcoff owned a hotel in New York that was sold to Qatar for $400 million. He claims it was at fair market value. According to a Netflix program called Dirty Money, Jared Kushner was bailed out of insolvency by a $400 million loan from Qatar. Witkoff and Kushner are presently the negotiators representing America in negotiating a deal with Iran. Qatar has just presented Trump with the world’s most luxurious Boeing 747 aircraft costing over $400 million. The Attorney General has determined that the gift is legally permissible, as it is gifted to the US government and not to Trump personally. Trump is now using the plane. Whichever way you look at it, there is no doubt that Qatar has bought influence within the highest levels of the US administration. President Trump sees Qatar as a friend and ally of America. Qatar is playing a double game of pretending to be a friend of America, while actively promoting the aims of the Muslim Brotherhood and the downfall of the West.

More than a decade ago, Dutch politician Gert Wilders produced a short movie of the growth of Islam in Holland. The final scene was filmed inside a mosque of an Imam waving a sword during a sermon, declaring, “Come and cut off his head! By Allah, we shall cut it off!”

**To Crown it All**. This Bel Air home in LA, listed on the market as the US’s most expensive residential property is owned by a Qatari billionaire and former prime minister. Qatar’s ruling Al Thani family and state funds have amassed massive real estate portfolios across Western capitals with their holdings often exceeding those of local monarchs. (Photo: Simon Berlyn/The Beverly Hills Estates)

Gert Wilders was charged with inciting hatred for making and showing the movie. No charges were ever laid against the Imam. There is no doubt that the message of that particular Imam is part of Islam.

In the early hours of October 7, 2023, Hamas invaded Israel. They rejoiced at filming themselves committing the most violent crimes of murder, rape, beheading, and hostage taking. Many people in the West believe that the Muslim concept of Jihad applies only to Jews. They are mistaken. Jihad is aimed at every single person who does not believe in Islam. This is a wakeup call to all those Westerners who are totally ignorant of what Islam and Jihad are all about. One day, when the Islamists decide that it is time to overthrow the West, tens of thousands of militant Islamists that are your fellow citizens, and could be living next door to you, will act in the same way that Hamas acted against Israel. They will take out their guns and invade your residences. They will shoot your dogs, murder your babies and children in front of you. They will gang rape the female members of your family, and then mutilate and decapitate you and your parents. Some of you will have metal rods shoved into your vaginas and others will have your breasts cut off. All of this will be filmed by the people rejoicing at what they have done. Some of you will be kidnaped and kept in cellars. You will either be killed, used as sex slaves, and finally used as bargaining chips to secure the release of other Jihadists that have been incarcerated. If you find the above shocking, then it is time to wake up to the reality of what Hamas actually planned and carried out in Israel. This is what Jihad is all about. As they say in Hollywood, Coming shortly to your neighborhood. Groups such as “Gays for Gaza” are the epitome of the ignorance that exists about the dangers of militant Islam.

**Tuitions of Terror**. The preferred host of Hamas terrorist leaders, Qatar is the largest foreign donor to American higher education, funneling billions of dollars into U.S. and Western universities. Seen here is Cornell University that received over $2.3 billion. (Credit: Cornell University stock photo)

I will end with what must be the strangest case of genocide ever recorded. Thousands of Palestinians living in the West Bank are finding illegal ways to cross into Israel to find employment. Tens of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza would gladly come to work in Israel, if Israel would allow them to do so. It defies all logic that all these Palestinians would be trying desperately to come to Israel, if Israel was committing genocide against them. It is time for all those gullible Westerners who are protesting that Israel is committing genocide to understand that you are supporting a blood libel and false narrative. It is time to reflect on your support for those that aim to kill you. It is time to understand the disproportionate role that tiny Israel is playing in preventing militant Islam from taking over the western world.

It is time to say “Thank you Israel.”

About the writer:

Accountant Neville Berman had an illustrious sporting career in South Africa, being twice awarded the South African State Presidents Award for Sport and was a three times winner of the South African Maccabi Sportsman of the Year Award. In 1978 he immigrated to the USA to coach the United States men’s field hockey team, whereafter, in 1981 he immigrated to Israel where he practiced as an accountant and then for 20 years was the Admin Manager at the American International School in Even Yehuda, Israel. He is married with two children and one granddaughter.

While the mission of Lay of the Land (LotL) is to provide a wide and diverse perspective of affairs in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world, the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by its various writers are not necessarily ones of the owners and management of LOTL but of the writers themselves. LotL endeavours to the best of its ability to credit the use of all known photographs to the photographer and/or owner of such photographs (0&EO).

CAN LEBANON FINALLY ESCAPE HEZBOLLAH?

Rubio has delivered a diplomatic breakthrough. Now comes the difficult task of turning a framework into lasting security.

By Andrew Fox

For the first time in 44 years, Israel and Lebanon have put their names to a framework agreement. Rubio is presenting it as a first step toward ending the conflict, restoring Lebanese sovereignty, dismantling Hezbollah’s military infrastructure, and creating a verifiable path toward security on Israel’s northern border. The deal reportedly begins with two pilot zones, into which the Lebanese Armed Forces will enter as Israel redeploys. At the same time, the IDF remains in Lebanese territory for as long as Hezbollah continues to pose a threat.

**Brave New World**. Meeting with CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper in Beirut on June 29, Lebanese president Joseph Aoun (centre) is bravely navigating a high-stakes strategy by chartering a historic and unprecedented path directly confronting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah.

This agreement is a meaningful development. It is also where the hard part begins. The agreement creates a process, not an outcome, and the central question is whether anyone can impose that process and outcome on Hezbollah. According to the framework text, Israeli withdrawal is tied to the verified disarmament of non-state armed groups and the dismantling of their infrastructure. That sounds straightforward in Washington. In Lebanon, it runs straight into the political and coercive reality of Hezbollah.

Iran will not let Hezbollah go quietly into that good night. For decades, Hezbollah has been an integral part of Tehran’s regional architecture: a military asset in the plan to destroy Israel, a deterrent, and a lever in wider negotiations. It has proven its utility both by striking inside Israel’s borders and by keeping Lebanon diplomatically tied to Iran’s confrontation with Israel. From Tehran’s perspective, the disarmament of Hezbollah would be a catastrophic strategic loss.

That said, Hezbollah is far more than a line item in an Iranian budget. It has its own funding streams, including smuggling, illicit trade, and international criminal networks. Pressure on Tehran alone will not collapse Hezbollah’s operating capacity. The group has spent years building redundancy into its financing, logistics, and social control.

The pilot-zone mechanism is therefore the key test. The Lebanese army’s entry into the first two areas could be a useful beginning, especially if it establishes a precedent for state authority in places where Hezbollah has long treated Beirut’s sovereignty as an irrelevance. The problem is that Hezbollah overmatches the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) in most important respects: firepower, salaries, coercive capacity, embedded networks, and willingness to intimidate local opponents.

**Mapping Path to Peace**. This is the map of the “buffer zone” stipulated in the historic agreement signed between the Lebanese and Israeli governments, which will allow Israel to maintain its troops on Lebanese soil commensurate with Hezbollah disarmament.

(On the origins of Hezbollah – see here.)

The success or failure of the deal hinges on operational freedom. If Israel hands areas to the LAF and the LAF cannot prevent Hezbollah retrenchment, can Israel still act? Israeli officials are already saying the IDF will retain freedom of action in the security zone and remain until Hezbollah and other armed groups no longer pose a threat. That answers part of the Israeli security concern, but “pose a threat” is a loose definition and “no longer” may be doing some heavy lifting. Still, it also creates an obvious point of Lebanese and Hezbollah resistance: an agreement framed as restoring sovereignty may be attacked domestically as legitimising an open-ended Israeli presence.

The risk of Lebanese civil war is already more than a theoretical problem. Hezbollah has already rejected the deal, with Naim Qassem describing it as a surrender and saying the group will continue armed resistance. We have seen reports today of an Israeli drone strike in southern Lebanon, in an area outside the newly defined Israeli-held zone. In other words, the announcement has not suspended the underlying dynamics of the conflict.

**Set for Showdown**. Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem has formally rejected the US-brokered framework agreement signed between Beirut and Jerusalem, characterizing it as a surrender of Lebanese sovereignty stating that the group will not relinquish its arms and is prepared to continue armed resistance.

The same question applies beyond the south. What happens in Hezbollah’s depth areas, including the Bekaa Valley and the logistical corridors that keep Hezbollah in the fight? Can Israel still strike weapons flows, command nodes, and rearmament infrastructure there under the terms of this deal? A framework that manages the border while leaving Hezbollah’s rear areas intact may reduce friction without meaningfully changing the balance of power in Lebanon.

There is also the view from northern Israel. If residents of Kiryat Shmona, Metula, Manara, and other border communities still believe Hezbollah can rebuild observation posts, restore launch capacity, or prepare another frontier shock, displaced Israelis will not return simply because a framework exists. They will only return if the facts on the ground change, visibly and durably.

The Lebanese side faces an equally hard political problem. Hezbollah’s power inside Shia communities rests on welfare provision, patronage, identity, coercion, and deep disillusionment with the Lebanese state. If Lebanon is serious about replacing Hezbollah’s order with state authority, it has to offer more than checkpoints, and foreign-backed security plans. It has to offer protection, services, and a political alternative that does not leave communities feeling exposed.

**People Power**. Defiant of Iran-backed Hezbollah, a poster depicting Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun that reads ”The decision-maker, the protector of Lebanon, Lebanon first…The State always. We are with you” hangs at the entrance of a tunnel on a street in eastern Beirut on April 28, 2026. (Photo: Joseph EID / AFP via Getty Images)

So, yes: this is progress. A signed Israel-Lebanon framework after 44 years is not nothing, and the pilot-zone model gives the parties something concrete to test. The right posture, however, is cautious scepticism. The success of this deal depends on enforcement, verification, Israeli freedom of action, LAF capacity, Hezbollah’s coercive response, Iran’s tolerance for strategic loss, and Lebanon’s ability to offer its Shia citizens something better than the status quo. Until those details are clear, this is a good first step but it is not yet a settlement.

About the writer:

A veteran of three grueling tours of Afghanistan, Major Andrew Fox holds a Batchelor’s degree in Law & Politics, a Master’s in Military History & War Studies, Msc in Psychology and is currently studying for a PhD in History.

*Feature picture: ‘Sign’ of the Times. The historic signing of the Israel-Lebanon-U.S. “Trilateral Framework Agreement” is intended to contribute to regional transformation by envisioning an eventual normalization of relations between the two states of Israel and Lebanon. (Photo: AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)

PAINFUL PARADOXES

Perhaps one of the emotional challenges of Jewish life in difficult times is not only learning how to survive what is happening around us but learning how to live with what we cannot control within it.

By Bev Moss-Reilly

When Control Slips Away

It would be unfair and far too simplistic to say that all Jews are the same. No people are. And yet, within Jewish life, there is often a recognisable thread: a deep need to be prepared, to think ahead, to solve, to organise, to lead, to hold things together, and to find a way forward even in difficult times. This is not about arrogance or dominance. It is often about responsibility. It is about survival. It is about history. It is about generations of people who learned that if they did not stay alert, adaptable, resourceful, and mentally engaged, the consequences could be devastating.

**Always Alert**. Always needing to be alert for danger, Israelis take cover on the side of a road as a siren warns of incoming ballistic missiles fired from Iran into Israel, near Rosh HaAyin, February 28, 2026. (Photo: Yossi Aloni/Flash90)

Jews have had to stand up repeatedly throughout history. They have had to rebuild, reimagine, and remain resilient in the face of displacement, persecution, exclusion, and uncertainty. Out of that has come an extraordinary tradition of leadership, innovation, scholarship, creativity, commerce, medicine, science, technology, law, and the arts. Not because life was easy, but often because difficulty demanded courage, discipline, and determination. There is a long-standing instinct in Jewish life not merely to endure, but to contribute, to guide, to repair, and to give meaning.

That is why losing control can feel so profoundly unsettling.

When a person is used to being capable, informed, proactive, and emotionally braced, uncertainty can feel like the rug has been pulled out from under them. It can leave them anxious, vulnerable, exposed, and even ashamed of how fragile they suddenly feel. The very people who are often looked to for strength may find themselves inwardly rattled when they cannot fix, plan, protect, or anticipate what comes next.

**Calm in Class**. Israel’s teachers report anxiety, depression as war takes mental toll.

There is a close relationship between anxiety and control. They are, in a sense, “Mishpocha” (Family). When life feels unsafe or unpredictable, the urge to control becomes stronger. One tries to organise more, think more, prepare more, check more, manage more. Sometimes this is helpful. It can create structure, purpose, and a sense of agency. But when circumstances become bigger than what any one person can manage, control starts to slip, and that is where mental health can take a knock. Sleep suffers. Thoughts race. The body stays tense. Patience thins. Small decisions feel overwhelming. A person may become irritable, tearful, withdrawn, hypervigilant, or emotionally exhausted.

This is especially true in Jewish communities living with threat, antisemitism, war, instability, or communal fear. When uncertainty grows, it does not only disturb practical life. It disturbs the inner life. A parent may feel distressed because they cannot guarantee a child’s safety. A teacher may feel shaken because she cannot promise normality. A spouse may feel deeply unsettled because no amount of planning can remove the danger facing a loved one. A community leader may look calm on the outside while inwardly carrying enormous strain because so much feels beyond their control.

For many Jews, this loss of control is not experienced in a vacuum. It can stir something older. Historical memory, inherited vigilance, and intergenerational trauma can all intensify the feeling that uncertainty is dangerous. When life becomes unpredictable, it may touch not only present anxiety, but also a much deeper communal memory of what happens when security becomes fragile. That does not mean every Jewish person experiences uncertainty in the same way. But it does help to explain why loss of control can feel especially loaded.

**The Norm in an Abnormal Situation**. Anxiously on their phones checking the news or being in touch with loved ones, Israelis take cover in a public bomb shelter in Tel Aviv as siren warn of incoming missiles fired from Iran, June 20, 2025. (Photo: Yehoshua Yosef/Flash90)

There is also a painful paradox here. The stronger and more competent a person usually is, the harder it can be to admit when they are struggling. People who are used to leading, coping, and carrying others often feel deeply uncomfortable being the one who is frightened, needy, or emotionally unhinged. They may judge themselves harshly. They may keep functioning while quietly falling apart inside. They may tell themselves they should be stronger, calmer, more grateful, more composed. Mental strain does not disappear because a person is intelligent, accomplished, resilient, or capable. Sometimes those very qualities make it harder to recognise when support is needed.

This is where compassion becomes essential. Not pity. Not pathologising. Compassion. The kind that says it makes sense that you are struggling when so much feels uncertain. It makes sense that loss of control unsettles you. It makes sense that a people shaped by responsibility, resilience, and leadership would find helplessness especially painful.

The answer is not to shame the need for control. The answer is to understand what sits underneath it. Very often, underneath the need for control is a longing for safety. A longing for dignity. A longing to protect those that one loves. A longing not to be caught unprepared by pain. Seen in that light, the need for control is not something to mock. It is something to approach gently.

**Community Coalesces**. The anxiety of Jews in the UK is captured in this photo at an antisemitism rally in Whitehall, central London, following a series of arson attacks and two people being stabbed in Golders Green, north-west London on April 29. (Photo: Lucy North/PA Images via Getty Images)

Mental health support can help people learn the difference between healthy agency and impossible responsibility. It can help them recognise what is theirs to hold and what is too heavy to carry alone. It can help them calm a nervous system that has become overburdened by vigilance. It can help families and communities talk more honestly about fear, uncertainty, and emotional overload without seeing these as signs of weakness.

Jewish life has always honoured strength, but true strength is not only found in taking charge. Sometimes it is found in acknowledging vulnerability. Sometimes it is found in saying this is hard for me. Sometimes it is found in allowing support, in loosening the grip just enough to breathe, and in accepting that even the most resilient people cannot control everything.

**Despair Down Under**. Once considered one of the safest havens for Jews throughout the world, no more as attested by this graffiti in a Jewish area in Melbourne, Australia applauding Hitler. ( Photo: Executive Council of Australian Jewry )

Perhaps that is one of the quiet emotional challenges of Jewish life in difficult times. Not only learning how to survive what is happening around us but learning how to live with what we cannot control within it. That loss of control has consequences, yes. It can leave people anxious, frayed, and emotionally depleted. But with insight, support, and compassionate understanding, it does not have to define them.

It can instead become an invitation to soften, to share the burden, and to remember that being strong has never meant being untouched.

About the writer:

Bev Moss-Reilly is a Jewish freelance content writer living in South Africa with a deep and heartfelt focus on mental health, emotional wellbeing, trauma, grief, and the unseen struggles people carry every day. Through her writing and her Mental Health Packs, she aims to bring comfort, awareness, compassion, and practical support to individuals, families, workplaces, and communities. Her work is rooted in empathy, dignity, and the belief that nobody should feel alone in their pain, especially in times of crisis.

SOUTH AFRICA CLAIMS ISRAEL IS BEHIND ITS ‘AFROPHOBIA’ VIOLENCE

Beset by internal social strife, South Africa indulges in cheap scapegoating blaming Israel – Is anyone surprised?

By Marika Sboros

So, Israel, the world’s most overworked, overused and abused scapegoat, is the “hidden hand” behind South Africa’s latest xenophobia crisis.

Of course, it is. If you believe the latest conspiracy theory to emerge recently from the fever swamps of South African social media.

But has Israel really been orchestrating South Africa’s xenophobic violence – or “afrophobia”, as activists and academics in the refugee and migration space now call it?

**Protecting** **Africans from South Africans**. The South African police during a protest against illegal immigrants organised by March and March in Goodwood, a Cape Town suburb, on May 30, 2026. (Photo: Roger Bosch/AFP)

And if so, why and how would tiny Israel find time and inclination in its hectic military schedule despite fighting ongoing wars back home, including against the Iranian behemoth?

In retaliation, apparently, for South Africa taking Israel to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in December 2023, on a genocide in Gaza charge. Or so the theory holds.

Israel could be understandably miffed at South Africa lodging its ICJ case “urgently” within weeks of a genuine genocidal attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023. That urgency speedily dissipated, and South Africa’s case has proved ill-judged.

Its own lawyers recently requested and were granted an extraordinary 18-month extension. This means that its written submissions won’t be completed until 2029.

Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs was unsparing on X:

“This case was never about the facts. It has always been a propaganda campaign by South Africa in the service of Hamas, masquerading as a legal process.”

One local Facebook “influencer” said the xenophobic violence would disappear “like the night when the sun rises” if South Africa dropped its ICJ case.

A pan-Africanist Facebook group claimed that Israelis were poised to swoop into South Africa, destabilise it from within by pushing Black Africans “to the margins” and to rebuild it “in their own image.” With a little help from friends in “Western powers” (aka the US).

That led critics to suggest that the conspiracy theory is aimed as much at US as Israeli “hidden hands”.

“HOME-GROWN’ HIDDEN HANDS

Yet accusing Israel of trying to destabilise South Africa from within describes precisely what years of ANC governance have actually done after more than 30 years since “liberation”. From within. By its own hand.

The hidden hand has always been home-grown.

If Soviet-Jewish writer and war correspondent Vasily Grossman were around, he’d say:

“Tell me what you accuse Jews of and I’ll tell you what you’re guilty of.”

It’s the closing line of a longer passage in his novel, Life and Fate, where he argues that antisemitism is never an end in itself. Rather, it is a mirror for the failings of individuals, social structures and state systems.

With those words and a novelist’s precision, Grossman captured what psychologists call “projection”. It is the mechanism by which people and institutions attribute to others the very impulses, failures and crimes they cannot face in themselves.

Their accusations are not random, say psychologists. They are often confessions.

Accuse Jews of controlling the world through money and fear, and you may be the one controlling through precisely those means. Or you may be helpfully deflecting attention from the real controllers.

A South African example of that projection is in a speech by Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, founder and CEO of Gift of the Givers, a local charity acknowledged globally for its humanitarian disaster-relief work.

On October 5, 2023, Sooliman addressed an anti-Israel rally in Cape Town beneath a banner declaring “We Are All Hamas”. He said, in his own words, that:

“…They (Zionists) run the world with fear. They control the world with money.”

He attempted to pre-empt accountability by saying antisemitism charges are just tools to silence criticism of Israel. However, while there is plenty to criticise in Israel’s government and its policies, genocide and apartheid are not part of that legitimate critique. As legal scholars across the world (not all of them Jews) say.

And antisemitic tropes are tropes, whatever political cover is thrown over them.

PROTOCOLS REVISITED

Sooliman’s language feeds into the core premise of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion. That’s an enduring publication, which the Russian Tsarist secret police fabricated between 1898 and 1903. It purported to be the minutes of a secret meeting of Jewish leaders plotting world domination through control of global financial systems, governments and media.

The Times of London exposed it as a clumsy, plagiarised forgery in 1921. That did not dent its popularity. If anything, it became even more popular. Hitler cited it. Henry Ford distributed 500,000 copies of it across the US. It is still in print.

Sooliman’s declaration is one of the oldest tropes in the Jew-hater’s lexicon. It feeds off the original “blood libel” – the term for the claim that Jews kill Christian children to drink their blood in religious ritual. It dates back to the 12th century.

It is testimony to Jew hatred’s enduring power that both claims have retained their power into the 21st century. It is, after all, the world’s oldest hatred. (Call it “antisemitism”, if you prefer that 19th-century, pseudo-scientific euphemism coined by Jew-haters themselves to make their loathing sound respectable.)

Jew hatred has helped to make “Zionist” the anti-Israel lobby’s preferred code word for Jew. Lobbyists deploy Zionist as a swear word for Jew and a deliberate strategy to avoid detection of hate speech online. Social media platforms are slow to close the loophole because the distinction between legitimate criticism of Israeli government policy and antisemitic conspiracy theory dressed up as political commentary is notoriously difficult to police at scale.

Perhaps the most common and ironic example of projection in modern times is the ubiquitous accusation that Jews, aka “Zionists”, have committed genocide in Gaza. There can be no worse accusation to make against victims of actual genocide than to accuse them wrongly of being perpetrators of it.

That is projection in its most naked form.

DARK GLOBAL TRADITION

Hamas’s charter is explicitly genocidal towards Jews. Hamas political bureau member Ghazi Hamad declared on Lebanese TV on October 24, 2023, that October 7 was “just the first time and there will be a second, a third, a fourth” until Israel’s existence “finished”.

And while this is a South African story, it sits in a very long, very dark global tradition. It includes the latest mutation of Jew hatred with documentation over 900 years old.

Jew hatred has caused pogroms, mass expulsions of entire communities from countries Jews had lived in for generations, and the systematic murder of six million Jews.

The accusations change. The consequences for targets stay the same.

Post-October 7, Jews are being savagely attacked worldwide and killed just for being Jews. As the title of US author Dara Horn’s book bleakly notes, People Love Dead Jews.

October 7 is where nine centuries of Jew hatred, unchecked and unashamed, have ultimately led.

Yet October 7 denialism is rife. Some critics deny that Hamas committed atrocities on October 7.

They call it “resistance”;
They say that Israel “had it coming”;
that it was a “false flag” or “psyop” (psychological operation), in which Israel staged the massacre of its own civilians to gain sympathy and justify genocide on Palestinians in Gaza.

That is Holocaust denial in real time.

It raises the question of where this conspiracy theory linking Israel to xenophobic violence began.

Mzoxolo Mpolase, managing editor of Political Analysis South Africa, did some forensic work in an article on his website on May 27. He traces the conspiracy theory to a single January 2026 post in the Times of Israel’s open blog section, a platform for third-party contributors with no implied editorial endorsement.

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

The author is a former South African, Grant Gochin, now based in California, USA, where he is a writer, financial advisor and serves as the Honorary Consul for the Republic of Togo in West Africa.

Gochin argued that African states are trapped by colonial borders and that South Africa should fragment into smaller sovereign entities. That was his opinion, nothing more, as Mpolase notes.

That’s where the chain of evidence ends, as Mpolase notes.

Gochin posits no funding channel, instruction or organisational relationship between Israel, its government’s policy and South Africa’s xenophobic or afrophobic protests.

Seth Mandel, writing in Commentary Magazine on June 11, 2026, identifies an “emerging, seemingly iron rule” about accusations against Israel that may help to explain the real dynamic behind the conspiracy theory.

“Pay attention to the when, and you’ll figure out the why.” He could have been channelling Grossman.

Mandel gives four notable items, including a column in The New York Times on May 11, with “wild accusations that Israel is training dogs to rape Palestinian inmates, along with uncorroborated allegations of state-sanctioned abuse.”

On May 12, a major commission released a two-year catalogue of evidence showing that Hamas used mass rape and sexual torture as a key weapon of its military strategy on October 7 and after.

That made the timing of the Times piece, in pre-empting the results of an actual investigation into Hamas, “suddenly clear”, as Mandel notes.

Grossman saw the mechanism in 1960. Mandel documented it in real time.

It is all the more disturbing, then, that South African government ministers at the highest levels and respected NGOs (non-governmental organisations) have enthusiastically helped to spread the hidden-hands conspiracy theory.

Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola gave the keynote address at a symposium co-hosted by DIRCO (Department of International Relations and Cooperation) and the South African Institute of International Affairs in Cape Town on May 25, 2026. He condemned the xenophobic violence strongly and took care not to mention Israel by name.

He undid that good work by saying that “with the current geo-political environment, and South Africa’s role in the international space, including our case at the ICJ, you cannot exclude state and non-state actors trying to erode the human-rights standing of South Africa.”

That was a dog whistle with a foghorn attached.

**Master Manipulator**. Giving the keynote address at a symposium co-hosted by DIRCO in Cape Town on May 25, 2026, South African Foreign Minister **Ronald Lamola** condemned the xenophobic violence taking place in his country and although not mentioning Israel by name, implied such by stating that with “our case at the ICJ,” against Israel, “*you cannot exclude state and non-state actors trying to erode the human-rights standing of South Africa*.”

PROPAGANDA TV CHANNEL

Prominent refugee and migration academics and activists in South Africa have amplified it. Chief among them is Julie Eccles, a public face of Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia (KAAX).

KAAX is a broad, grassroots civil-society coalition that claims to advocate for pan-African solidarity and constitutional rights for everyone, regardless of nationality or legal status.

**Seeking Safety**. Far removed from Israel, a man sits with a blanket to keep warm as thousands of Malawians take refuge on June 20, 2026 in Sherwood Park outside Durban, South Africa. Around 12,000 people have passed through the camp in recent weeks, seeking safety amid intimidation campaigns by anti-migrant South African groups. (Photo: Per-Anders Pettersson/Getty Images)

Everyone except “Zionists”, apparently, in Eccles’s book.

She appeared on a Salaam Media panel on June 3, with Sharon Ekambaram, KAAX co-founder and head of Refugee and Migrant Rights at Lawyers for Human Rights, Prof Loren Landau, professor of migration and development at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, and Oxford University in the UK, and Mthunzi Mdwaba, a controversial South African businessman and legal academic.

The panel’s topic was Xenophobia in South Africa: Is There a Hidden Hand Stirring the Chaos?

On live TV, Eccles named a “hidden hand”, Martin Moshal, who she described as “an Israeli billionaire” and “dyed-in-the-wool Zionist.” She said that he had donated “at least R40-million to Action SA”, a party that “doesn’t even have a seat in parliament,” and “talks openly” about turning South Africa into “whatever his vision is.”

She got most of that wrong. Whether by default or design, neither reflects well on her or KAAX.

Action SA has six seats in Parliament. Moshal is South African, born and raised in Durban, currently living in Sydney, Australia. He is a venture capitalist, a philanthropist, and the largest known donor to opposition parties in South Africa, including the DA (Democratic Alliance), Action SA, the IFP (Inkatha Freedom Party) and BOSA (Build One South Africa).

**Singing for Salvation**. While a man plays his guitar as thousands of Malawians take refuge on June 20, 2026 in Sherwood Park outside Durban, South Africa, certain leaders in South Africa try play a different tune pointing a finger of blame at Israel. (Photo: Anders Pettersson/Getty Images)

Eccles said none of that. Instead, she played by the anti-Israel lobby’s rule book of injecting Jewish figures as shadowy puppet masters into local disputes and manufacturing foreign conspiracies where no logical connection exists.

MORE DOG WHISTLES

Mdwaba declared himself “happy” that Eccles had “mentioned Israeli elements.” That was his loud dog whistle to scapegoat Israel as a hostile actor behind the xenophobic violence.

Landau, whose reputation at Wits and Oxford universities rests on rigorous, evidence-based analysis, could have challenged and corrected Eccles’ claims in seconds. He said nothing about her misrepresentations. Neither did Ekambaram.

Salaam Media, a Johannesburg-based media agency and radio station that claims to be committed to “humanitarian journalism”, could have included at least one dissenting voice on the panel. There were none. The question in the panel’s title was rhetorical, and the answer decided before the cameras rolled.

That is not journalism. It is propaganda.

The ANC’s support for the Palestinian cause is the main backdrop to the conspiracy theory. It remains rooted in its history of solidarity with anti-colonial liberation movements, regardless of how violently extreme.

The apartheid smear against Israel drives much of its rhetoric. Some South Africans who actually lived under apartheid recognise and reject it as a propaganda weapon. Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East. Its Arab citizens vote, sit in the Knesset and serve on the Supreme Court.

That is not apartheid.

And South Africa is no stranger to strains of afrophobic violence. Since “liberation” in 1994, there have been at least six major waves of such violence against Black African migrants. The worst came in May 2008, when 62 people died, some were left burning alive in the streets, and over 100,000 were displaced.

Since October 7, the response from some ministers, including President Cyril Ramaphosa, has been sartorial. They don a Palestinian scarf in public and ignore deepening potholes in the country’s literal and figurative roads.

The formula for scapegoating Jews has not changed globally in 900 years.

The accusation is always a confession. The charge is always a mirror. And the target is always the same.

US Representative Ritchie Torres put it bluntly on X in 2024, after Iran’s Supreme Leader praised American campus protesters against Israel:

“When … the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism and antisemitism … praises you, you have become useful idiots on the wrong side of history.”

Show South Africa’s scapegoating, hidden-hand conspiracy theorists anything remotely close to a peace sign, and they will still see a clenched fist.

They may think they are on the right side of history by demonising Israel and Jews who support it. If they keep going – and they most likely will – their place is secure as useful idiots on history’s wrong side.

*Feature photo: Recuring violence against foreigners from across Africa is now the norm in South Africa. Seen here foreign nationals holding a placard during an anti-xenophobia march outside the City Hall of Durban on April 8, 2015 where the protestors marched against anti-immigrant violence, a week after hundreds were viciously attacked. (Photo credit should read RAJESH JANTILAL/AFP via Getty Images).

About the writer:

Marika Sboros is a South African freelance investigative journalist with decades of experience writing fulltime for the country’s top media titles on a wide range of topics. She started her career as a hard-news reporter in the newsroom of the now defunct Rand Daily Mail, a campaigning anti-government newspaper during the worst excesses of the apartheid era. She commutes between South Africa and the UK.

Follow Marika Sboros on X: @MarikaSboros
Subscribe on Substack: Marika Sboros

LEGAL ACTION AGAINST ‘PALESTINE ACTION’

UK Court of Appeals confirms Palestine Action proscription decision

By Lawrence Nowosenetz

The British group called Palestine Action (PA) was founded in 2020 and has been active in acts of violence and destruction of property at various sites in the UK. It has made well publicised threats and incitement. It’s stated goal being directed against what it regards as Israel’s “genocidal” and “apartheid regime“. This secretive and criminally minded group has now been confirmed to be unlawful in the UK.

Under the Terrorism Act of 2000, the UK Home Secretary has the power to proscribe (ban) any organisation believed to be engaged in terrorism. In June 2025, the Home Office designated Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation and this was announced to Parliament on 23 June 2025. After approval by positive resolutions of both Houses of Parliament, on 5 July 2025, the order implementing the proscription of Palestine Action came into effect.

**British Barbarians**. Elbit’s 35-million-pound ($43 million) research and development hub that was violently attacked by ‘Palestine Action’ (a now proscribed terrorist group) employs 680 people across 16 sites, working on multiple programs for the British military. During the raid, a ‘Palestine Action’ activist fractured a police sergeant’s spine with a sledgehammer.

The banning was challenged by Ms Ammori, a leader of PA, and the Divisional Court upheld this challenge setting aside the proscription ruling. This was based on two grounds: Firstly, that the Home Secretary did not correctly apply the proscription policy and secondly that the proscription disproportionately interfered with individual rights under the European Convention of Human Rights.

The Home Secretary appealed against this decision on both grounds and sought to restore her proscription ruling. The Court of Appeals fully upheld the Home Minister and restored her proscription decision in a judgment dated 15 June 2026.

The appeal has highlighted the disturbing nature of PA and its underlying ideology.

The court considered the shadowy structure and operations of PA. According to the official judiciary press summary:

“It held that the content of Palestine Action’s “Underground Manual” was revealing; evidence from or on behalf of Ms Ammori provided surprisingly little information about Palestine Action; the extent and nature of Palestine Action’s membership and organisation were largely unexplained; the lack of information was intentional and consistent with the image cultivated by Palestine Action in its “Underground Manual” of being a covert organisation; Palestine Action operated through cells of trusted people who were encouraged to avoid identification or detection and were advised on “smashing stuff” with a sledgehammer, and encouraged to be “creative” and to disrupt targets “without restraint.”

The Court rejected the notion of PA as a peaceful protest movement operating in the open but rather a covert organisation avoiding detection and prosecution with unidentifiable cells. It said in considered and restrained terms:

“Palestine Action could not properly be portrayed as a non-violent organisation; it was not accurate to describe it as an ordinary protest group engaged in activities falling within the well-established tradition of peaceful protest. It was engaged in causing serious damage to property. It presented a very real risk of injury not only to property but also to members of the public. Its campaign was intended to close down the operations of a company pursuing a lawful business by intimidation, not persuasion.”

Click to access Press-Summary-Ammori-v-SSHD.pdf

The court noted that:

“…many individuals have been arrested and/or charged for offences under the 2000 Act in respect of Palestine Action; there are currently over 700 cases pending in the criminal courts of England and Wales, and many more at the pre-charge stage.” (Judgment paragraph 6)

Click to access Final-open-judgment-Ammori-v-SSHD.pdf

The activities of PA have included dramatic acts of violence and destruction targeting companies both British and Israeli manufacturing defence equipment for the IDF:

Elbit Systems have been a primary target. In 2021 members of the group clad in red boiler suits unlawfully clambered onto the roof of an Elbit owned UAV (drone) factory and staged an occupation lasting 6 days. Charges were laid against 10 members for conspiracy to commit criminal damage and aggravated trespass.

In 2022, protesters chained themselves to a gate of an Elbit UAV subsidiary. On 6 August 2024, at Elbit’s Aztec West compound, six activists driving a van, breached the security fences and entered the facility causing substantial damage to property and equipment. This episode resulted in confrontations with security personnel and police, in which a police officer sustained a fracture to her lumbar spine.

**‘The Wild Bunch’**. Portraying themselves as a mere “protest group” for Palestine, ‘Palestine Action’ used a decommissioned prison van to smash through security shutters on their way to wreak havoc, cause extensive damage and inflict bodily harm.

These actions contributed to multi-day shutdowns and potentially contributed to the loss of a £2.1bn contract between Elbit UK and the Ministry of Defence.

On 16 March 2025, Elbit’s Aztec West site was targeted by four Palestine Action activists with a crane mounted vehicle and a hammer attached to a rope to smash second floor windows and daub red paint on the building. They were arrested on the site with all being charged with conspiracy to damage property and three being charged with one count of assault by beating.

**Return to the Dark Age**s. Bodycam footage shows an officer aiming a taser gun at an intruder at Elbit UK’s site in Bristol, England, after the intruder struck a police officer with a sledgehammer. (Screen capture: Channel 4)

In June 2025, members of PA gained access to a RAF facility and sprayed red paint into the engines of two RAF Airbus A330 refuelling planes. This caused serious damage and can be regarded as sabotage.

Cambridge University has also been targeted. In 2024, PA activists defaced a historic portrait of politician Arthur Balfour with spray paint at Trinity College, Cambridge in protest apparently of the 1917 Balfour Declaration. The historic Senate House and Old Schools building were also spraying red paint by PA in subsequent incidents.

**Rage and Rampage**. Footage of the break-in was uploaded to social media by ‘Palestine Action’, whose campaign resulted in millions of pounds in property damage across the UK, multi-day site shutdowns, and severe injuries to security and police personnel. Seen here are its attack on Elbit Systems Raid (Bristol) causing an estimated £1.2 million in damages by using crowbars and hammers to smash windows and destroy computers, drones, and equipment.

BLUEN BABBLE

South African Jo Bluen of SA Jews for a Free Palestine, is an ardent supporter of PA. In her post on X dated 10 August 2025, she responded to the arrest by British police of a blind protester holding a sign supporting PA. In her inimitable Bluen babble:

“May these ziofascist and zioliberal met police in the imperial metropole know no peace as the colonial carceral guard of the western apparatus of genocidal complicity in the settler colonial ethnic cleansing, barbarism, holocausts, the ongoing Nakba in Palestine. Across the colonised world.

British, ‘brutish, nasty and in shorts’. British, brutish, from Balfour to Bibi.”

**Bluen Blew It**. At times incoherent pro-Palestine South African activist, Joe Bluen, may now have difficulty getting a visa to study in the UK following her public support for the now proscribed violent terrorist group, ‘Palestine Action’.

The British authorities are aware of Ms. Bluen’s activities and ideological alignment. She may face visa difficulties with the UK following a complaint to the Home Office.

The proscription of PA is a clear and unequivocal message to the world, that no amount of propaganda, lies and hatred towards Israel can mask the lawless, brutal, ugly, violent face of those who hide behind this mask to commit acts of incitement to hatred, destruction of property and injury to persons.

*Feature photo: Palestine Action activists take part in a protest after the government announced its plans to proscribe the group. (Photo: Neil Hall/EPA-EFE)

About the writer:

Born in Pretoria Lawrence Nowosenetz obtained his BA at University of the Witwatersrand and LLB at the University of South Africa. He has been admitted as an Attorney in South Africa and as an advocate in South Africa. He practiced at the Pretoria and Johannesburg Bar and worked as a human rights and labour lawyer at the Legal Resources Centre a public interest law firm. Lawrence was Awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and completed professional internship in the USA. He was a a labour arbitrator and mediator, part time Senior Commissioner at the Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) as well as a panelist at Tokiso Dispute Settlement. He was a member of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies and Pretoria Chairman. He has also served as an Acting Judge of the High Court, South Africa. He now lives in Tel Aviv.

FROM AN AILING KING SAUL TO A FAILING “KING BIBI” – TIME FOR CHANGE

Promises, platitudes and politics is all that is left on offer from Israel’s prime minister.

By David E. Kaplan

The story about the prophet Samuel informing King Saul that his kingdom was being taken away in favor of a more worthy successor, remains a pivotal moment in the biblical narrative about the wisdom of timeous political transition. (Samuel 15 and 16)

Some 3000 years later, this narrative could not be more instructive.

What if Samuel was with us today and like all Israelis on 16 June 2026, who turned on their local TV news channels to hear their prime minister address the nation on Trump’s MoU. (Memorandum of Understanding).

**‘Deal’ with the Devil**. In response to national anxiety over Trumps MoU, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu holds a press conference on the June 15, 2026, asserting that ‘we saved Israel from annihilation’ in war, admits he and Trump don’t always ‘see eye to eye,’ stresses troops will remain in south Lebanon and admits he does not know all the details of the deal. (Photo: Olivier Fitoussi/Pool)

After all, the issue is the number one existential issue facing the nation of Israel.

This is what the prime minister himself believes.

This is what he has been telling us and the world not for years but for decades. On this issue, he prides himself no less a prophet than Samuel.

So, what would Samuel have thought as he looked upon like all of us in disbelief?

What would he have wisely counseled while going about doing God’s work?

After so much war and suffering, did not the people of Israel deserve to hear at least some details from their prime minister to UNDERSTAND what was happening?

Bibi offered anything but UNDERSTANDING!

Well, not quite because we UNDERSTOOD that Bibi was as lost as all of us as the only relevant insight he could share on the MoU was that he did not know yet any details.

He let us know that we knew as much as he did.

Comforting!

As we prepared to watch Bibi’s carefully choreographed address, all were anxious having been subjected to the rumors that the agreement would:

– strengthen Hezbollah

– strengthen Iran and

– weaken Israel.

As we later learned, it did all three, virtually making Lebanon an Iranian protectorate. Bad enough for us in the center of the country but what of our fellow citizens in the north that as The Jerusalem Post editor solemnly writes would mean:

“…the difference between a family returning to Metula, Kiryat Shmona, Minara, Shlomi, or the Galilee, and another year of empty streets, shuttered businesses, improvised schooling and lives lived in suspension.”

Did the prime minister offer to them and the rest of his listening citizenry anything beyond, promises, platitudes and politics?

Like an ailing King Saul this was a failing “King Bibi” and that we, the modern citizens of Israel, needed fresh ideas and fresh leadership.

Displaying disdain for the concerns and anxieties of his people he hardly even addressed the MoU – the number one issue on all viewer’s minds and why they turned on their TVs to watch.

Desperate to hear some straight talk about what the burgeoning deal between the US and Iran would mean for us, all we got as most commentators agree was a superficial “campaign speech” using the platform to highlight Bibi’s military achievements and outlining future political goals.

Clearly, most pressing for Bibi was setting the record straight following a June 2026 interview, when U.S. President Donald Trump publicly questioned whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu intended to run in Israel’s upcoming fall elections, remarking “I wonder if Bibi even wants to continue.”

**Soaking in the Spotlight**. While Trump was enjoying his birthday week by parading his ‘Peace Deal’ with Iran at the G7 in France that sidelined Israel’s interests and concerns, Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu found himself adrift having few credible answers to an exhausted and skeptical citizenry that will in months be deciding his political future.

Bibi assured his viewers that he will be running and that “I intend to win.”

Hardly what many wanted to hear!

In a De Gaulle mode of Je suis la France (“I am France”), Bibi believes he is indispensable to Israel – that he embodies the Jewish State.

Having endured two major conflicts with the Iranian regime, spending hours in shelters as Iranian ballistic missiles rained down indiscriminately in attempts to kill as many Israeli civilians as possible, with lives lost, homes destroyed, and nerves frayed, Israelis deserved more.

They did not get it.

Where we did get the truth was from Trump’s former partner- in-chief during his first term, VP Mike Pence who blasted the U.S.-Iran MoU, warning it contains no requirement for Iran to dismantle its nuclear or ballistic missile programs and no commitment to end support for terror groups like Hamas and Hezbollah.

All issues critical to Israel, Pence said the deal would immediately ease sanctions, unlock billions in frozen Iranian assets, and pave the way for hundreds of billions in reconstruction funding for Iran, calling it “the kind of appeasement” seen under previous administrations.

**Pense making Sense**. Apart from Bibi not “seeing eye to eye” with his buddy Trump, neither did former U.S. VP, Mike Pence, who called the US-Ian MoU “the kind of appeasement” seen under previous administrations.

Days later, having time to “digest”, many in Israel felt a need to belch as the final memorandum appeared even worse than the leaked version, strengthening Iran’s hold over Lebanon, ignoring Hezbollah’s disarmament and exposing a seismic gap between Trump’s declarations and the agreement he signed. This deal sounds little more than extortion – paying Iran off to open Hormuz!

While all this is going on and Israelis have made such sacrifices for their families, for their friends and for their country, thousands of Hareidi protestors are blocking highways, attacking Supreme Court Deputy President Justice Noam Sohlberg’s private residence all in support of draft dodgers. What would Samuel say listening to a representative of the Jerusalem Faction protest say:

“We will shut down the country, and anyone who thinks they have seen it all is in for surprises. The struggle is only at its beginning, and our next steps will be far more significant.”

**Irate Israelis**. Israeli citizens voice their discontent with the reports of the agreement signed between the US and Iran, which completely sidelined Israel.

And what is this governments response to this anti-Zionist conduct undermining and dividing the country?

Adding insult to injury, this government under this prime minister is advancing a proposed Basic Law that elevates Torah study to a foundational national value that will define long-term Torah study as equivalent to “meaningful service” in the IDF.

Shame, Shame, Shame.

What would Samuel of 3000 years ago say today?

He would say like most are feeling.

It is time for change.

‘ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE’

A South African take on “As You Like It” is playing at the International Court of Justice at The Hague.

By Craig Snoyman

“Honestly m’lord, we know he was in the bank when the robbery took place, we believe he is one of the robbers. Grant us an urgent interdict preventing him from doing any further robberies. If he is the robber then we are stopping further robberies. If he is not the robber, well then, he is not suffering any harm. We’ll bring comprehensive evidence in to due course to show that he is actually the robber, we promise.”

This is not much different from the argument presented by South Africa when it arrived at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 29 December 2023. The South African government sought renewed international relevance by filing an urgent case against Israel. And so it was that South Africa arrived, breathless with urgency, armed with the faded moral aura of Mandela with robes billowing, waving documents and followed by an army of lawyers in its wake, that might bankrupt a small country. In front of the world’s cameras, it demanded that immediate relief for what it alleged was a genocide.

The application was marked urgent.

The request for provisional measures screamed emergency.

The world was told there was no time to waste.

**Hocus Pokus**. Teetering on the verge of bankruptcy, the ANC announced in early January 2024 that it had suddenly managed to stabilize its finances – no explanations given – and in the same week, approached the ICJ to ask that Israel’s actions in Gaza be classified as “genocide”. Under the shadow of Iran’s plotting over proceedings, supporters of the trump-up charge *outside the Western Cape High Court on 11 January 2024 in Cape Town, South Africa. (Photo: Gallo Images/Brenton Geach)*

And the court played its part. The world watched two days of oral argument — a mere fortnight after filing. The provisional measures order followed against the presumptive robber, sorry, make that prospective genocider. All very urgent. All very now. All very theatrical — but then the world is a stage.

South Africa’s initial application ran to 84 pages. Its memorial, filed in October 2024, ran to over 750 pages of text with more than 4,000 pages of exhibits and annexes. Having seen the general competence of the South African government, one cannot, even on the most generous assessment, believe that it was capable of producing 4,750 pages of material between the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023 and the filing date of 29 December 2023. The unanswered question that the South African government has still not been willing to answer in public is how long, exactly, was this ‘urgent‘ application in the making before the moment of urgency that supposedly required it? The leader of the South African legal team, John Dugard– the man who has spent at least the last 10 years agitating against Israel – probably knows the answer. The circumstantial evidence suggests that it was not a mere three months in creation.

“Urgency” allowed South Africa to leapfrog the queue and obtain interim relief before a final hearing. The premise of urgency was that the harm was occurring now, that it could not wait for the judicial mill to grind at its exceedingly slow pace. Any delay would cause irreparable damage to rights that deserve protection. Whether the other party is left carrying the stigma as a robber, or a genocider, is outweighed by the risk of potential harm.

On 26 January 2024, the International Court of Justice issued its Order on provisional measures. The court explicitly stated that its order was “not a ruling on whether Israel is in breach of the Genocide Convention.” The former President of the ICJ, Joan Donoghue — who had presided over the very hearings in question — explained that the court had not found that it was plausible that Israel was committing genocide. It had found that certain rights asserted by South Africa — not the right to be free from genocide as such, but rights under the Genocide Convention — were plausible enough to justify provisional protection from irreparable harm pending a full hearing.

**Corrupting the Court**. Despite former ICJ President Joan E. Donoghue clarifying to the BBC that the court did **NOT** conclude that there was a “plausible case” of genocide against Israel in Gaza, did not stop the global hysteria from propagating otherwise in order to besmirch the character of the State of Israel.

This finding detonated through global media like a diplomatic hand grenade. South Africa celebrated and its domestic commentators declared that the ICJ had found that Israel was ‘plausibly committing genocide.’ Legal academics issued breathless analyses confirming that the court believed genocide was occurring. I recall one very prominent South African law professor asking Natasha Hausdorff where she got her law degree, after Hausdorff had pointed out to her that the court had not found there was a plausible genocide.

The distinction is not technical wordplay. It is the difference between a court saying “we find it plausible that the party is a robber” and a court saying “we find it plausible that there are rights worth protecting while we decide whether the party is a robber.” The court followed the latter principle. South Africa’s government either did not read that part, or found it inconvenient. The world’s media, supplied with South Africa’s narrative and disinclined to examine ICJ jurisprudence on a Friday afternoon, ran with the finding that a genocide was plausible.

South Africa filed its memorial in October 2024: 750 pages of text, 4,000 pages of exhibits. Israel could and did raise preliminary objections to jurisdiction and admissibility, choosing not to raise the issues as a standalone exercise earlier, which would delay proceedings for six to twelve months while they are decided. Israel has raised these arguments in its counter-memorial, filed on 12 March 2026, requesting extensions from the court. South Africa opposed these extensions on the grounds that they “undermined the urgency of the proceedings.”

THE ‘PLOT’S’ (ANTI)CLIMAX

On 21 May 2026, a notice was published on the ICJ website which granted South Africa until 22 November 2027 to file its replying memorial, and set 22 May 2029 as the deadline for Israel’s rejoinder. The same country that stated extensions undermine the urgency of the proceedings asked for and was granted an extension of 18 months. If previous court procedure is followed then Oral Hearings, should probably occur in late 2029. A final judgment as to whether genocide actually occurred would only be expected sometime in 2030 or 2031.

If the matter was urgent enough to demand provisional measures within two weeks of filing, it is curious that when faced with Israel’s 1,000-page counter-memorial and its 4,000 pages of exhibits, South Africa now requires 18 months to formulate a reply. Perhaps South Africa’s founding memorial represented the entirety of the government’s awareness, and the subsequent 4,750-page memorial required far more critical analysis on a matter which is far more complex than it had initially led the world to believe. One wonders whether Pretoria’s legal team had war-gamed the scenario where the funding pipeline has dried up when further rounds of written pleadings and oral hearings still need to be attended to. Perhaps that accounts for the 18-month extension request. Perhaps the delay is not about complexity. Perhaps it is about waiting to see whether the financial climate improves, whether the government in Tehran survives and proves generous, or whether some other source of support emerges to defray the huge costs of this case.

**Murky Machinations**. Responding to allegations that the ANC received funding from Iran to finance the legal costs to charging Israel at the ICJ in the Hague of “genocide”, the Iranian Ambassador to South Africa, Mansour Shakib Mehr, refuted such allegations at a press conference saying that in any event, “the case was filed by the South African government” and “not filed by the ANC.” (Photo: Supplied)

Israel has carried the ‘genocide state’ label since 7 October 2023 — the date Hamas committed the largest massacre of Jews since the Second World War. This label was magnified by the January 2024 order, mischaracterised by governments, adopted by protest movements, and has been continuously repeated by worldwide legacy and social media for the last two and a half years.

No finding of genocide has been made.

The ICJ has not concluded that genocide occurred or is occurring. The court has issued provisional measures — temporary interdicts pending a full hearing — but has explicitly declined to rule on the merits. But Israel will continue to carry the ‘genocide state’ label until the finalisation of the case.

What will happen if, sometime around 2030, the ICJ finds for Israel on the preliminary objections alone, by holding that the court lacks jurisdiction, or that the application is inadmissible or that the genocide convention cannot be expanded into a general mechanism for adjudicating the legality of the use of force? Or my personal favourite: that no dispute exists because no “positively opposed views” had been found and there had been no exchanges, either publicly or privately, to establish a dispute. This would be a monumental screw-up on the part of South Africa, and Dugard did not address the issue particularly well in January 2024. The case would be dismissed without any finding on the merits. In the court of public opinion, Israel would not be found innocent of genocide, because the court would have examined whether genocide occurred. It would simply have been determined that South Africa had no standing, or that the court had no jurisdiction, or that the application was procedurally defective.

“WORDS, WORDS, WORDS”

The genocide label, however, will remain in circulation. The articles will not be retracted. The resolutions will not be rescinded. The protest chants will not be updated. Public opinion operates on narratives, and the narrative of a “genocide state,” “ICJ genocide case” “plausibly genocidal” will be further grist to the mill.

Israel would emerge from nine years of lawfare and worldwide accusations of genocide in the world’s highest court, having its reputation treated as collateral damage by a government in Pretoria that has neither the answers to confront it legally or to comply within the timeframes it originally demanded to prevent undermining the process.

**Rot in the Republic**. While the republic of South Africa’s government focuses on pursuing false charges of genocide against Israel, it fails abysmally in dealing with humanity issues at home like these foreign nationals sleeping on the street after fleeing their homes amid anti-immigrant protests in Durban, South Africa on June 9, 2026. While demonstrations across the country have escalated into violence, resulting in injuries and the deaths of foreign nationals, South Africa’s government prefers to focus on Gaza! (Photo: Reuters/Rogan Ward)

And what if Israel is successful on the merits? There is apparently an amicus curia brief (a report to aid the court by a non-party) by some of the world’s pre-eminent military experts, stating that Israel’s war in Gaza has been more protective of non-combatants in a warzone than any other war in the history of mankind. It makes no difference. For the duration of this case — which will extend into the 2030s, Israel has carried and will continue to carry a status in international community that one might describe as the legal equivalent of a skunk at a garden party. No formal finding of genocide. No conviction. A verdict of acquittal. But the association, repeated daily in global media, in university campuses, in governmental statements from hostile states have real-world effects on trade, on diplomatic relations, on the treatment of both Israeli nationals and Jews abroad.

South Africa will continue to play the role of the global avenger until a final verdict is delivered and possibly even beyond. And while it reads its lines and while its government officials talk of accountability and international law, they speak with the sincerity of men who have spent the better part of the last few years avoiding both.

About the writer:

Craig Snoyman is a practising advocate in South Africa.

FROM URGENCY TO DELAY: WHAT HAPPENED TO SOUTH AFRICA’S ICJ CASE?

South Africa exposes through ineptitude its true motivations behind its fabricated case against Israel.

By Kenneth Moeng Kgwadi

Nearly two months after Hamas launched its deadly surprise attack on the State of Israel, the ANC-led government brought a case against Israel before the United Nations’ International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing it of violating the 1948 Genocide Convention. South Africa alleged that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) were committing acts of genocide in Gaza.

The move was not entirely surprising, given that the ANC had refrained from unequivocally condemning the initial Hamas attack, during which approximately 1,195 people were killed, more than 5,400 were injured, and 251 others were abducted and taken into the dark and dangerous tunnel network beneath the Gaza Strip.

**What a Drag!** South Africa’s “genocide” case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is set to drag on for at least another three years after Pretoria requested an 18-month extension to file its response to Israel’s defence.

There have been allegations that Iran influenced and financially supported the ANC in pursuing legal action against Israel. While these claims remain contested, they have fueled debate about the motivations behind South Africa’s decision to bring the case before the International Court of Justice.

It is also noteworthy that none of the 22 Arab states spanning the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region took the lead in initiating similar legal proceedings against Israel. This raises legitimate questions about why South Africa, located thousands of kilometres from the conflict zone, assumed such a prominent role.

To make matters worse, Egypt, which shares a border with Gaza through the Rafah Border Crossing, maintained strict controls on the movement of Palestinians into its territory during much of the conflict. Given the geographic proximity and direct regional implications of the war, it would have seemed more logical for one or more neighbouring states to spearhead the legal challenge against Israel rather than a country situated at the southern tip of Africa.

The South African government’s recent request for an 18-month extension to submit its written response, or Memorial as it is formally known, demonstrates that there was no real sense of urgency from the outset, despite claims to the contrary when it initiated its legal campaign against Israel at the end of 2023. Common sense suggests that, had the matter truly been urgent, South Africa would have acted with greater speed and efficiency in assisting the ICJ by providing the necessary legal material and evidence required for the Court to make a determination.

**Pitfalls of the Plotters**. What began with pretentious haste by South Africa’s legal team has now slowed to a snail pace through ineptitude. Seen here in early days of the proceedings at the ICJ are Vusimuzi Madonsela, the South African ambassador to the Netherlands (right), with South Africa’s justice minister, Ronald Lamola. (Photo: Hollandse Hoogte/Rex/Shutterstock)

It is quite evident that the ANC-led government was misled by Iran and Hamas, who knew that the allegations levelled against Israel were fabricated and lacked any factual basis.

It is hypocritical for the ANC-led government to initiate a legal case and then become the very party requesting a delay in its own proceedings. There appears to be little logic in such a course of action. What, then:

– becomes of the claims that genocide was taking place in Gaza?

– Was this legal action not intended to halt what the government described as an ongoing genocide?

If the government already possessed the facts and evidence that prompted it to approach the ICJ, why would it require almost two years merely to submit a written Memorial? Such a delay would perhaps be more understandable if it had been requested by Israel, the respondent in the case, rather than by South Africa, the applicant.

So far, we have learned that this ICJ case has already cost taxpayers a staggering R130 million, and it is likely to require even more funding beyond 2029 should the government of the day choose to continue pursuing it. The prolonged delay risks rendering the case increasingly irrelevant, as geopolitical realities are constantly evolving and may ultimately diminish its significance in the years ahead. Israel is expected to hold elections before the end of this year, while South Africa is preparing for its own national elections in 2029. These political developments could significantly influence the nature of relations, or tensions, between the two countries.

‘BURDEN’ OF PROOF

What is clear is that the ICJ case carries not only a substantial financial burden but also far-reaching economic and diplomatic consequences, some of which South Africa has already begun to experience. Several individuals have effectively been shown the door after the United States declined to approve South Africa’s nominee for ambassador to Washington, D.C. Relations between Pretoria and Washington continue to deteriorate, with tensions further exacerbated by the United States’ Afrikaner refugee programme. At the same time, escalating tariffs threaten to affect ordinary South Africans who are already grappling with economic hardship.

**Unwelcome in the USA**. Not mincing his words in offending the US president, the newly appointed South African Ambassador to the U.S. Ebrahim Rasool was declared *persona non grata* and expelled in mid-March 2025.

South Africa would be better served by adhering to a policy of non-alignment, refraining from direct involvement in foreign conflicts while continuing to advocate for peace and dialogue, principles it has sought to champion since 1994. Becoming entangled in distant geopolitical disputes risks imposing severe economic costs on citizens who are already struggling to make ends meet. Major BRICS members such as China and India have generally avoided unnecessarily escalating tensions with the United States, recognising the significant economic and diplomatic consequences that can arise from such confrontations.

About the writer:

Kenneth Moeng Kgwadi is a political scientist, columnist and research fellow at the Middle East Africa Research Institute (MEARI).

A 20-YEAR RHODES SCHOLAR TYPE PLAN: HELPING SECURE THE FUTURE OF ISRAEL AND THE JEWS

The cumulative effect of the global strategy of destroying Israel has placed us in a precarious situation, with few friends around the world.

By Solly Kaplinski

(Courtesy of The Jerusalem Post where this article first appeared)

Professor Seymour Fox, one of the most influential figures in modern Jewish education, dean of the School of Education at Hebrew University of Jerusalem (1967–1981), where the School of Education was later named in his honor, was the founder of the Melton Centre for Jewish Education, a major center for Jewish educational research and leadership training.

President of the Mandel Foundation, he was also the architect of the Jerusalem Fellows program (launched in the early 1980s), an elite leadership development fellowship for experienced Jewish educators from abroad. Fellows spent extended periods in Jerusalem studying educational philosophy, Jewish thought, leadership, and institutional change, then returned to leadership roles in their Jewish communities.

**Lasting Legacy**. Arguably one the most important visionary in Jewish education, Seymour Fox (1929 – 2006) was the founder of the Melton Centre for Jewish Education, at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

A visionary, a mover and shaker, a disruptor, a brilliant fundraiser, Seymour co-opted significant leaders and philanthropists to his cause.

I was extremely fortunate to be selected for the Jerusalem Fellows, and being surrounded by the best and the brightest on the program, which took me way out of my ghetto comfort zone on the backwater slopes of Table Mountain in Cape Town. Here, I was able to thrive in an environment which empowered me to exponentially sharpen my knowledge base and practice, develop my leadership skills and levels of confidence, establish a cohort of mentors – and essentially, jet-fueled my career.

I thought about the Jerusalem Fellows program, which still impacts Jewish education, after attending an inspirational lecture by Dr. Tal Becker, a vice president at the Shalom Hartman Institute, international lawyer, Israeli peace negotiator, and one of the leading voices in Jewish thought on Israel and global affairs.

My main takeaway from his presentation was that while in the Middle East, post-October 7, Israel may have “won,” whatever that means, we have unfortunately lost the West.

We in Israel and in the Jewish world, besides being hopelessly and tragically unprepared for the traumatic, Holocaust-like massacre of October 7, were also disastrously unprepared for October 8 – and for what continues to this day, unabated: the roller coaster, runaway tsunami of anti-Israel and anti-Jewish hatred that had clearly been orchestrated and choreographed way in advance.

**Unprepared and Unresponsive**. The reflexive antipathy on the streets across the world following October 7 surprised the Jewish world that was totally unprepared against a rising tide of global antisemitism.

It is backed by millions of dollars invested over many years, in an ongoing, vitriolic, anti-Israel campaign, backed by the legacy media, adding fuel to the cause – which has consequently made it unsafe for Jews around the world.

What is especially sad is that we were reaping the fruits of the golden age of global Jewry: post-Holocaust to October 6, reveling in and being liberated by our newly found freedoms of acceptance and admiration, perhaps the pinnacle being the ultimate status symbol of marrying a Jew!

Jewish people internationally thrived, developing sophisticated health, education, and welfare services in our local communities, but also enthusiastically sharing our good fortune, making huge contributions as entrepreneurs and captains of industry, and being incredibly generous to the larger communities in which we lived – in many cases, being significant philanthropists of note, held in awe.

Jewish leadership globally engaged with and was instrumentally involved in helping to build the State of Israel on many levels – from investing huge sums of money via the organized Jewish community – to sending hundreds of thousands of youngsters on Birthright, an established rite of passage, to visiting frequently and to making aliyah, leading by example.

And yet, it seems, notwithstanding the outstanding leadership and dedication of people of exceptional calibre, that we somehow took our eye off the ball, seemingly unaware of the simmering antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment bubbling just below the surface.

We also played down the impact of more than $1.1 billion donated by Qatar to US colleges and universities in 2025, the single largest foreign source of university funding that year, giving Qataris access to political leaders, academics, policy experts, journalists and business elites. Do the math!

We also did not consider the impact of faculty on students at elite universities in the US and globally, in the post 60’s progressive era who focused, in the main, on Israel as an “oppressor and colonialist state.”

**Rid the Jew**. “Nothing prepared me” was a common response from Jewish students at US campuses to the sudden post October 7 outbreak of antisemitism. (Photo: Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)

Neither did we factor in the impact of NGOs in the “human rights” sphere, with millions of dollars at their disposal, who continue to be preoccupied with, and constantly demonizing and delegitimizing, Israel.

Of course, the power of social media, driven by the multiplier, viral effect of algorithmic, visual hatred of Jews, has left us entirely flatfooted.

SECURING ISRAEL’S FUTURE THROUGH LEADERSHIP AND EDUCATION

Consequently, we are constantly in reactive mode, seemingly unable to counter this rolling snowball avalanche of hate, anti-Israel marches around the world, and now, perhaps climaxing with Kristof’s recent hit-piece screed in The New York Times, essentially comparing us with Hamas – and playing down the self-documented brutality of Hamas in their orgy of rape and violence as documented in the Israeli Civil Commission Report: “Silenced No More” (May 2026).

The cumulative effect of this global strategy of destroying Israel has placed us in a precarious situation, with few friends around the world, feeble government responses, and the crumbling of protective guard rails, literally placing Jewish lives in jeopardy.

I would argue that no matter what we do or say, for the foreseeable future, we will be the pariah of the international community.

Returning to Professor Fox and his Jerusalem Fellows model: what is desperately needed is to intensively train the next generation of elite leaders, who are knowledgeable and can be proactive, and respond with facts and figures, who will be influencers and have exceptional writing, social media, and content-producing skills.

Think of Eylon Levy, of people who will have that rare combination of intellectual depth, moral seriousness, public clarity, and persuasive presence to handle any contingency, and who will be able to engage effectively in the intellectual and moral contests of our time as well as take on the establishment. This, after all, is the new battlefield. Think Bari Weiss.

**Man on a Mission**. Eylon Levy, who served as an official spokesman for the State of Israel at the outbreak of the October 7 emerged as one of the world’s most recognizable advocates for Israel driving billions of impressions across social media.

Imagine bringing 20 exceptional people annually from a diversity of fields of expertise from around the world, over a 10-year period, to spend two years living, conversing, and debating together in Jerusalem. They would create a living, intellectual ecosystem and combustion chamber in real time where excellence becomes contagious, where Fellows are feeding off each other, and while sitting at the feet of and being trained by Tal Becker and Tal Becker clones.

They would be exposed to the best scholars, educators, and practitioners from Israel and around the world, in the Rabbi Jonathan Sacks mold, perhaps the greatest scholar and teacher of our generation – all united by a common mission: to be prepared, as part of a strategic network, to take on the mantle of responsible Jewish leadership in a topsy-turvy, unstable world, which has its sights set on destroying Israel.

**Inspiring Example**. The writer draws inspiration from the towering philosopher, author, and moral voice of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks (1948–2020) who was unyielding in his articulate public resistance to rising antisemitism and anti-Zionism, and who eloquently stood up to protect Jewish communities across the world.

A fund of at least $100 million is needed to concretely plan for and to set up urgently the equivalent of Rhodes Scholars, in essence, adapting the model of the Jerusalem Fellows into a long-term, elite leadership incubator, to rigorously prepare a new generation for the intellectual, cultural, and media battles ahead. These future leaders will help shape thousands of lives through media, policy, education, scholarship, diplomacy, and institutions.

This initiative should be given the highest priority – if we are to help secure the future of Israel and the Jewish people.

Are we up to this existential challenge?

Feature photo: Leadership Circle. The Mandel Program for Leadership in Jewish Culture aims to promote a rich and diverse, deep and connecting Jewish culture that will impact the future of Israeli society and the Jewish people.

About the writer:

Solly Kaplinski, a graduate of Herzlia School, Habonim, the Jerusalem Fellows and the Universities of Cape Town and South Africa, headed up Jewish Day Schools in Cape Town, Toronto, and Vancouver before making Aliyah with Arleen in 2000. Author of the novella, A World of Pain: A Redemptive Parable?, and 2 volumes on Donors, and Fundraisers – see http://www.journeysintothegentleheart.com, Solly’s professional life in Israel is bookended by working at Yad Vashem and The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. Solly and Arleen’s three daughters, their spouses, and a minyan of grandchildren all live in Israel.

KICKING THE GENOCIDE CAN FURTHER DOWN THE ROAD

The ICJ saga of SA vs Israel – an update.

By Lawrence Nowosenetz

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has recently kicked the genocide case brought by South Africa against Israel further down the road. It has authorised the filing of a second round of written submissions (court pleadings). The first round of pleadings consisted of a memorial and counter memorial. The court was requested by South Africa last month that a second round of pleadings was required because of the complexity of the case and the volume of Israel’s counter-memorial with numerous annexures. Israel also filed objections to the court’s jurisdiction and the admissibility of South Africa’s application.

Article 49 (3) of the rules of the ICJ provides:

“The Reply and Rejoinder, whenever authorized by the Court, shall not merely repeat the parties’ contentions, but shall be directed to bringing out the issues that still divide them.

In a ruling dated 29 May 2026, the ICJ has given South Africa until 22 November 2027, to file its reply and Israel has until 22 May 22, 2029, to submit a rejoinder.

Dr Gilad Noam, a member of Israel’s legal team said in a post on X dated 31 May 2026:

“… it demonstrates that South Africa’s allegations are wholly unfounded and that this is a case that should never have been brought in the first place. This case constitutes a manifest misuse of the Genocide Convention and of the Court itself. Regardless of how long it may take, the only tenable outcome remains the dismissal of South Africa’s claims in their entirety.”

What is the significance of this extension of time limits and the filing of further documents and what does this mean for the future of the case?

Clearly Israel’s counter memorial, its statement of defence has seriously derailed the entire case of genocide brought by South Africa. This is not surprising. The memorial filed by South Africa was filled with tendentious and inaccurate material which cannot stand scrutiny.

**South Africa’s Basket Case**. Dr. Gilad Noam, Israel’s Deputy Attorney General at the ICJ Ruling in January 2024, recently posted on X that “*South Africa’s allegations are wholly unfounded and that this is a case that should never have been brought in the first place.”* (Photo: ICJ.)

Legal wisdom has it, that if you cannot make out a decent case in your founding papers, you will be most unlikely to fix it in reply. The odds are that the case against Israel was at its high point in December 2023 when it brought the application for provisional measures but since then it is on a downhill trajectory as it has to embark on damage control to try and rebut Israel’s counter memorial. No doubt it will seek to introduce new material based on events subsequent to filing its original memorial. This is a two-edged sword. Much of the hype and misinformation about starvation, bombardment, violence against civilians, children etc has now been extensively researched by Israel and it is in a far better position to critique the unreliable reports by UN agencies and humanitarian organisations based in Gaza, many based on Hamas and lacking verification and sound methodology. Israel will be afforded the opportunity to offer these critiques in its rejoinder as well as its own careful research. Some of the reports stripping away the genocide case against Israel have already been published, for example the report of 311 pages published in September 2025 by the Sadat Centre for Strategic Studies in association with Bar Ilan University (BESA) entitled:

“Debunking the Genocide Allegations: A Re-examination of the Israel-Hamas War from October 7, 2023 to June 1, 2025”.

Let’s rewind.

On 29 December 2023, South Africa filed an application in the ICJ claiming that Israel was in breach of the Genocide Convention seeking preliminary urgent measures from the court to prevent genocide. This was less than three months after the invasion and atrocities by Hamas in Israel on 7 October 2023. Yet South Africa was able to assemble a fully researched account of Israel’s previous conduct in Gaza in earlier wars and an up-to-date record of the new war.

This application follows a similar approach to the 2019 Rohingya genocide case brought in the ICJ by the Gambia on behalf of the Organisation for Islamic co-operation against Myanmar. On 23 January 2020, the ICJ issued an order for provisional measures ordering Myanmar to prevent genocidal acts against the Rohingya Muslims. Since then, two rounds of memorials were also filed and the case was heard in January 2026. Judgment is expected in about six months. A relatively smooth passage yet at least seven years will have passed before a final outcome.

In the Gaza case, the court issued a provisional ruling on 26 January 2024 which has been widely misunderstood and often wilfully misrepresented. South Africa hailed it as a success and a vindication of its genocide claims. The ruling went down 5 to 2, with judges Julia Sebutinde (Uganda) and Aharon Barak (Israel) dissenting. Former president of the ICJ, Joan Donoghue, clarified that the court decided the Palestinians had a “plausible right” to be protected from genocide and that South Africa had the right to present that claim in the court. She emphasised that, contrary to some reporting, the court did not make a ruling on whether the claim of genocide was plausible, but found that there was a risk of irreparable harm (my emphasis). A far cry from establishing actual genocide in any shape or form.

**Playing with Plausibility**. The words of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) have been subject to intense scrutiny since South Africa brought its case and has centred around the use of the word “plausible” in the ruling. Then-president of the International Court of Justice Joan Donoghue said the ruling had been misinterpreted.

For those unfamiliar with legal procedures, in proceedings for interim or provisional measures, the threshold of proof is not as high and easier to establish than in a final adjudication. A mere likelihood or plausible risk of harm suffices. In South Africa, this is called a prima facie case. However, in a final hearing, proof of genocide is far more onerous. Proof of genocidal intention is called dolus specialis (special intent) which amounts to evidence which allows no other conclusion. The normal standard of proof of criminal intent is beyond a reasonable doubt. Dolus specialis does not even allow any reasonable doubt. Genocide is the ultimate crime against humanity and this term has been carelessly and promiscuously bandied about in condemnation of Israel by many countries, activists and human rights groups alike without any respect for its true international legal meaning.

The case has progressed as follows:

On 28 March 2024, following a second request for additional measures, the ICJ issued an order for further emergency measures, that Israel must ensure basic food supplies, in order to allay famine and starvation allegedly facing Gaza.
On 24 May 2024 a further order was issued requiring Israel to cease operations in Rafah. The court was divided. The Israeli, German, Ugandan and Romanian judges interpreted the ruling as not requiring a ceasefire in Rafah, and allowing for defensive operations against Hamas including the rescue of hostages. Israel continued its operations as it interpreted the order likewise.
In April 2024, the ICJ requested filing of pleadings in the main case i.e. determination of violation of the Genocide Convention. South Africa submitted its memorial in October 2024, and after being granted an extension of time limits, Israel submitted its counter memorial in March 2026.

There is more.

Between May 2024 and December 2025 several countries joined South Africa against Israel including European countries Ireland and Belgium. Somewhat less countries have stated their support for Israel including the UK and the USA. Canada and Australia remained neutral. It bears mentioning that Ireland intends arguing for an expansion of the concept of ‘genocidal intent’ to include blocking by Israel the supply of food to Gaza. Someone seems to have missed the point that food could also enter Gaza through Egypt. No one is pointing fingers at Egypt.

The Presidency of South Africa issued a statement on 2 June 2026. It noted that a second round of pleadings is common in ICJ cases. It is indeed correct that in the Rohingya genocide case there was indeed a second round where the parties were afforded time limits of 6 months, but what the Presidency fails to explain is why South Africa requested 18 months to file its reply. According to the Presidency –“South Africa’s response is a simple one: self-defence is not a defence to genocide, there is none.”

In South African parlance this called a blaps or howler. Faux pax if you like. Why did the South African legal team plead complexity to the court in asking for a second round of pleadings and extended time limits if Mr Ramaphosa says South Africa’s case is simple.

The Presidency got it breathtakingly wrong. Israel’s case is not simply self defence. It is based on a firm foundation of lawful military action in compliance with humanitarian law and the law of war (jus in bellum) as well as absence of genocidal intent. Astute observers are asking whether South Africa’s case will hold up at all.

**Clear Distinction**. Following the misuse of the term for political propaganda against Israel, former president of the ICJ, Joan Donoghue, clarified in a BBC interview that the ICJ did **not** rule that the core claim of genocide was plausible but that the Palestinians in Gaza have “plausible rights to protection from genocide”. (Photo: Biography file, ICJ)

It is unlikely that the ICJ will hear the case any time soon, perhaps an outcome can be expected after 2030 if at all. By then a new government will have been elected in South Africa which might adopt a different foreign policy which is not aligned with the adversaries of Israel. Even if the case is unwisely pursued by South Africa, it will yield insuperable factual and legal hurdles which will ultimately be its nemesis.

About the writer:

Category: BDS

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