Pro-Israel protest disrupted in Cape Town

From Ground Up of South Africa and additional information from the Jerusalem Post

A pro-Israeli protest at the Sea Point Promenade in Cape Town on Sunday was disrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters. Buses of protesters for Israel were sent away after the police started using stun grenades and water cannons to disperse a group of the counter-protesters for Palestine.

When GroundUp arrived, there was a standoff between protesters and police in riot gear. There was a heavy police presence, with City law enforcement and SAPS officers present before either protest started. Four people were arrested.

On Sunday there were only about a hundred pro-Palestinian protesters. A few dozen pro-Israel supporters, mostly from Christian churches, had arrived but they decided to call off their protest following the clashes.

Reverend Barry Isaacs, a convener of the protest for Israel, said the police were there because of the City, not at their request. “Our concern is for the innocent Palestinians that have died just as much as the Jewish people,” Isaacs told GroundUp. “We want to pray for peace and to find a solution.” He called for politicians to find common ground, but said that Israel had a right to defend itself in response to the 7 October attack.

The International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ) branch in South Africa helped organize the prayer rally, saying about 3,000 Christians and some Jews were expected to attend before police ordered them to call it off. The ICEJ stated that Mandla Mandela, Nelson Mandela’s grandson, was one of the main inciters of the violence on Sunday.

Others say that he was appealing for calm. Below, he’s saying something.

Abeedah Adams, a member of the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign (PSC), said that unlike other marches for Palestine, the counter-protest had no link to any official organisation. “It was more spontaneous: people responding to the posters and the media about the pro-Israeli protest…I think there’s a very strong sentiment that we can’t allow that kind of Zionism. It’s not welcome in the City of Cape Town,” she said.

The violence escalated when a pro-Palestinian protester attempted to steal an Israeli flag from a pro-Israel protester.

One photo from the scene showed pro-Palestinian protesters surrounding and harassing a pro-Israel one in a wheelchair, according to the report. The two sides reportedly shouted at each other as well.

According to the South African Friends of Israel, some of the pro-Palestinian protesters were seen waving ISIS flags.

“It was very shocking to see the level of threats and violence today,” said ICEJ-South Africa national director Vivienne Myburgh. “They were seeking out who was Jewish. It is rare to see that sort of hatred and threats here, but they are emboldened by the position of the ANC [African National Congress] government. The local Jewish community is very rattled.”

Meanwhile, the Jewish Board of Deputies published a statement expressing outrage at what it called antisemitism by one of the speakers at Saturday’s march. This was in response to one of the speakers saying: “We know where the murderers come from, they come from Herzlia, here in Cape Town.” Herzlia is a Jewish school in Cape Town. “The right to a decent education in a safe environment is a solemn one, vouchsafed by our constitution to every child in our country,” the Jewish Board of Deputies statement said.

Disclosure: GroundUp’s editor is an alumnus of Herzlia school.