South Africa 'gravely concerned' about its citizens joining Israeli Defence Force

Johannesburg, Dec 19 (PTI): The South African government has expressed concern about its citizens joining military forces of foreign countries, including Israel, citing this as a serious contraventio.

South Africa 'gravely concerned' about its citizens joining Israeli Defence Force

Johannesburg, Dec 19 (PTI): The South African government has expressed concern about its citizens joining military forces of foreign countries, including Israel, citing this as a serious contravention.

The Department of International Relations and Cooperation issued a statement on Monday amid reports that South African nationals have enlisted in the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) in its war against Gaza.

“The South African Government is gravely concerned by reports that some South African citizens and permanent residents have joined or are considering joining the Israeli Defence Forces in the war in Gaza and in other occupied Palestinian territories," it said.

Such action, the statement cautioned, can potentially contribute to the violation of international law and the commission of further international crimes, thus making them liable for prosecution in South Africa.

“In terms of the Regulation of the Foreign Military Assistance Act...any person wishing to render foreign military assistance in Israel must first apply to the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC) who will make a recommendation to the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans that such an application be granted or refused,” it said.

The department said any person joining the IDF without the necessary permission of the NCACC is breaking the law and can be prosecuted.

In addition, it said, the South African Citizenship Act provides that any person who obtained South African citizenship by naturalisation shall cease to be a South African citizen if he or she engages under the flag of another country in a war that the Republic does not support or agree with.

The statement said South African citizens should be aware of the consequences of joining the IDF or any foreign armed forces involved in conflicts with a view to preventing inadvertent complicity in international crimes or violations of domestic law.

In recent years, there have also been reports of South African Muslims mobilising groups to fight Western-allied forces in the Middle Eastern conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Palestine, but none of these have been proven. PTI FH SCY SCY SCY

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