South Africa’s Parliament Votes To Close Israel’s Embassy

A political analyst says he does not think South African President Cyril Ramaphosa really wants to close the Israeli Embassy in South Africa. Professor Sipho Seepe, former Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Institutional Support at the University of Zululand, says President Ramaphosa may be playing to the gallery to win public support because support for the Palestinian cause is strong in South Africa. This comes as South Africa’s parliament voted Tuesday to close the Israeli Embassy in Pretoria and suspend all diplomatic relations until there is a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas. Professor Seepe tells VOA’s James Butty, the ruling African National Congress supported the resolution introduced by the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) with modifications.