In a statement published the day after the bombing of the Holy Family Church compound in Gaza, which left three dead and at least nine injured (see Fides 17/7/2025), the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC), which brings together the bishops of South Africa, Botswana, and Eswatini, recalled that Israel's response to the massacre perpetrated by Hamas on October 7, 2023, "is now widely recognized throughout the world as genocide and ethnic cleansing."
"We share this assessment and, therefore, have given our support to the complaint filed by the South African government before the International Court of Justice in The Hague, accusing Israel of perpetrating acts of genocide," the SACBC bishops affirmed in the statement signed by their president, Cardinal Stephen Brislin, Archbishop of Cape Town.
The prelates explain that they hoped the action taken by the South African government would serve "as a peaceful means of pressing the parties in conflict to halt the spiral of violence." "This has not been the case," they note, underlining the responsibility of those who continue to send weapons: "The many countries that continue to supply arms and support the rhetoric of war have become accomplices in what history will undoubtedly record as a 'crime against humanity.'"
"Therefore, we raise our voices to protest against the ongoing genocide, and we join Pope Leo XIV in calling for a lasting ceasefire and the release of all hostages, including those in administrative detention," the bishops urge.
"Our prayers and solidarity must be accompanied by actions," they conclude, calling for "nonviolent action, boycotts in various sectors, active protest, and denunciation of the spread of war throughout the Middle East."
(LM) (Agenzia Fides 7/21/2025)
