Iran praises South Africa’s support for Palestine’s struggle against Israel

Iran's foreign minister has praised South Africa’s stances in support of Palestine, saying the African nation that has already experienced apartheid can understand the situation of the Palestinian people.

In a telephone conversation on Thursday, Hossein Amirabdollahian and his South African counterpart Naledi Pandor talked about the most important bilateral, regional and international issues.

Amirabdollahian referred to the importance of Africa in Iran’s foreign policy, underlining the new Iranian administration’s firm resolve to expand ties with the continent, especially with South Africa.

He also stressed that there are many opportunities and possibilities in the relations between Iran and South Africa.

The top Iranian diplomat referred to Iran and South Africa’s support for each other’s stance in the international organizations and underlined the need for the continuation of this trend and cooperation at the world bodies.

He further spoke about South Africa’s good positions on the issue of Palestine, saying, “You experienced apartheid in your own country and perfectly understand the current situation of the apartheid against the Palestinian people.”

South Africa was ruled by an apartheid regime from 1948 until the early 1990s.

The system was characterized by an authoritarian political culture based on white supremacy, which ensured that South Africa was dominated politically, socially, and economically by the nation's minority white population.

Human rights organizations say Israel imposes a similar apartheid system of oppression and domination against Palestinians across all areas under its control order to benefit Israelis.

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