South African lawmakers vote in favour of closing Israel’s embassy and cutting diplomatic ties

South Africa’s Parliament has voted in favour of a motion calling for the closure of Israel’s embassy in Pretoria amid soaring tensions between the two countries over the Israeli assault on Gaza.

The vote on the motion supported by the ruling African National Congress party came as President Cyril Ramaphosa in a meeting with other world leaders accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza with its military offensive in Gaza.

The motion tabled by the opposition party Economic Freedom Fighters received the support of 248 parliament members while 91 lawmakers opposed it.

The vote comes a day after Israel recalled for consultations its ambassador Eli Belotserkovsky from Pretoria “for consultations”.

South Africa has long been a vocal supporter of the Palestinian cause, with the ruling ANC party often linking it to its own struggle against apartheid.

Earlier this month, South Africa recalled all its diplomats from Israel and last week it joined four other nations in calling for an International Criminal Court investigation into the conflict.

The BRICS group of nations Tuesday called for an immediate and sustained humanitarian truce in Gaza during an extraordinary summit where chair South Africa accused Israel of war crimes and "genocide" in the Palestinian territory.

Pretoria hosted a virtual meeting of BRICS -- a group of major emerging economies that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa -- aimed at drawing up a common response to the Israel-Hamas conflict.

"We called for an immediate, durable, and sustained humanitarian truce leading to a cessation of hostilities," the group said in a summary of the meeting.

"We reiterated our strong support for regional and international efforts aimed at achieving an immediate cessation of hostilities, ensuring the protection of civilians and the provision of humanitarian aid."

Representatives from Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates -- countries that are all due to join BRICS in January 2024 -- were also invited to the talks.