Israel-Africa historical ties

T

heodore Zev Herzl’s famous words “If you will it, it is no dream” became a slogan and inspiration to the Zionist movement.

Relevant to us here in Africa is what the spiritual father of the Jewish State said more than 100 years ago in Europe: “There is still one important question that remains standing, a national disaster that has not been resolved to this day, one which only Jews are willing to get to the bottom of and that is the question of the blacks.

“…Imagine those despicable memories of the slave trade. People […] were stolen like cattle, captured and sold. Their ancestors were raised in contempt in a foreign country due to their differing skin colour. And I have no shame in saying this, and if they laugh at me, so be it: After I have been lucky enough to see the homecoming of my people of Israel, I am keen to assist for the home-coming of the blacks as well”.

These words were written years before the United Nations was established and many liberation movements were born.

Six decades later, Foreign Minister Golda Meir led Israel’s embrace of Africa, developing assistance and cooperation programmes with a special emphasis on women’s empowerment.

In her autobiography, she says:

“We had no history of being exploitative colonialists that could stain our relationship and we came in pursuit only of friendship.

Were we looking to collect votes in the UN? Yes, of course, but the main goal of our African adventure was that we had knowledge and experience to share with other young and less experienced nations than our own.

We came into Africa to teach and everything we taught, was internalised. What transpired when thousands of Israeli experts in agriculture, hydrology, planning, public health, engineering, public services and medicine arrived in African countries from 1958 to 1973, and what thousands of Africans trained under their instruction took home from these Israeli experts? The benefits that were reaped during those years are not, and will never be, lost”

These days, Israel is fighting in self-defence. It is not a territorial dispute nor a religious one, but an existential one. Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah and their patron, Iran, all state clearly: Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam obliterates it just as it obliterated others before.

On October 7 2023, over 1200 people were cruelly murdered in their homes, burned alive, sexually abused, kidnapped and taken hostage into Gaza.

Reacting to my descriptions of the Hamas terror attack, an experienced African statesman told me a few weeks ago: we’ve seen so much suffering in Africa; we know this very well.”

A young journalist asked me: “We have many problems in Africa, why should we worry also about this?

Well, simply because you had enough and you don’t want more!

Bodabodas (motorcycles) and Toyota pickup trucks have been used by terror groups in Africa before being used by Hamas.

It is not the means or the technology, but the copycat syndrome you should worry about.

It is using civilians as human shields you should worry about. It is the constraints put on your self-defence you should worry about!

Two Tanzanian students were murdered by Hamas on October 7 last year. Joshua Mollel’s body is still held by Hamas’s terrorists in Gaza along with 136 Israelis and kidnapped foreign nationals.

Israel came to Africa with a clean record and pure intentions. We are still here with the same aims and goals. We need your friendship, love and support.

If the African Union or any other regional organisation, including the upcoming Non-aligned Movement summit, wants a theme to unite around, let it be: fighting radicalism and terrorism and demanding the release of information regarding the whereabouts of the only African citizen held in Gaza; the only African citizen whose body cannot be brought to burial.

African countries should not be manipulated again! Stand with humanity! .