Countries from the Global South that are members of the BRICS+ group will lead both the negotiations for a peace agreement and the plan for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, destroyed by Israel. That’s the proposal of two Brazilian-Palestinian organizations, the Brazil-Palestine Institute (Ibraspal, in Portuguese) and the Palestinian Arab Federation of Brazil (Fepal, in Portuguese). It was presented on Wednesday (3) to the South African ambassador to Brazil.
If the plan succeeds, the proposal will seek the support of the Arab League, and will become an alternative to the deal put forward by Israel and the US. Both countries said they would draw up a reconstruction plan for the Palestinian territory after the end of the current massacre.
"The plan is an opportunity for this pro-Palestinian bloc to demarcate a historic stance, which will be remembered by the Palestinian people," said Ahmed Shehada, president of Ibraspal.
"The BRICS+ must use their influence and political importance to put pressure for reaching a lasting peace proposal that imposes on the Israeli state a non-interventionist approach and the disengagement of its military force from Palestinian lands," he concluded.
"The US has been influencing conflicts around the world and profiting from them, either by benefiting its defense industry, gaining access to natural resources such as oil or minerals, or by influencing strategic regions to interfere in trade agreements, alliances and geopolitical interests.” Therefore, a "possible aid from the BRICS+ for the reconstruction of Gaza would have a more humanist and solidarity-based appeal, even if the region would develop economically again as a result," said Fepal president Ualid Rabah.
The organizations say that, if led by BRICS+ and the Arab League, the proposal would guarantee minimum conditions for peace in the region and sovereignty for the Palestinians themselves to lead its reconstruction. BRICS+ includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, with the recent welcoming of Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates.
South Africa's support is crucial and symbolic. The country has currently taken a case to the UN's International Criminal Court (ICC) for the international community to recognize what is happening in the Gaza Strip as genocide. This year, another 12 countries joined the case.
South Africa was subjected to the racist regime known as apartheid (1948-1994), which made the country a natural ally in the Palestinian struggle for freedom and autonomy.
Background
The current Palestinian genocide committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip began in October last year. However, conditions in the sieged territory were already considered "suffocating" by the UN before that. The 17-year Israeli blockade imposed to allegedly force Hamas - the political party that won the Palestinian elections in 2006 - to give up power, has led to unemployment rates of 45% and food insecurity affecting 64% of the population. The UN estimates that over 80% of Gaza's residents depend on external aid to survive.
On October 7 last year, Hamas members entered Israel and carried out the most violent attack the country has ever suffered, killing around 1,200 people and taking 240 hostages. The international community considered the response of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government disproportionate. Daily bombings in what is regarded as one of the most densely populated territories in the world have caused the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians and destroyed Gaza's infrastructure.
The death toll exceeded 37,000 Palestinians – around 70% are women and children – with more than 8,000 people still missing under the rubble. 35% of the buildings were destroyed, and almost all of the more than two million inhabitants were forced to leave their homes.
In the other occupied Palestinian territory, the West Bank, illegal violence by Israeli settlers is a daily reality, with almost 600 people killed since October 2023. Since the beginning of the conflict, thousands of Palestinians have been arrested, and the Israeli government has announced that thousands more will be arrested this year. There are numerous reports of detainees being tortured.
The UN is warning of a humanitarian disaster, accusing Israel of using collective hunger as a weapon of war and emphasizing the possibility that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians will die from lack of food. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered an immediate halt to the bombardment of the Palestinian city of Rafah to prevent the killing of more civilians, a decision Israel ignored.
Edited by: Nicolau Soares
