‘Senior political and military officials’ encouraged genocidal rhetoric: South Africa

“Soldiers believe that this language and their actions are acceptable because the destruction of Palestinian life in Gaza is articulated state policy," said South Africa advocate Ngcukaitobi. 

“Senior political and military officials encouraged without censure the 95-year-old Israeli Army reservist Ezra Yahin, a veteran of the Deir Yassin massacre against the Palestinians in 1948, to speak to the soldiers ahead of the ground invasion in Gaza," added Ngcukaitobi. 

“In his talk, he echoed the same sentiment while being driven around in an Israeli army vehicle, dressed in Israeli army fatigue: ‘Be triumphant and finish them off and don’t leave anyone behind. Erase the memory of them. Erase them, their families, mothers and children These animals can no longer live. If you have an Arab neighbour, don’t wait, go to his home and shoot him. We want to invade, not like before. We want to enter and destroy what’s in front of us. Destroy houses, then destroy the one after it with all of our forces, complete destruction. Enter and destroy’.”