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Naledi Pandor South African Foreign Minister
Press conference

In answering one of the reporter's question, regarding relationship between South Africa and Israel... the SA FM said:

""I don't think it's a matter of South Africa and Israel. The real issue here is that all your questions are about Israel, but the actual concern is the people—the people of Palestine who are being killed every day, the people of Palestine who are sleeping in the cold, and the people of Palestine who are denied food, water, and energy. That is the critical issue that all of us should focus on. On that note, we stand with the people of Palestine, and our message to them is: never give up hope. South Africa got over the apartheid oppression; they will overcome."

VI. CONCLUSION AND MEASURES TO BE ADOPTED (PARAS. 75-84)
The Court concludes on the basis of the above considerations that the conditions required by
its Statute for it to indicate provisional measures are met. It is therefore necessary, pending its final
decision, for the Court to indicate certain measures in order to protect the rights claimed by South
Africa that the Court has found to be plausible. In the present case, having considered the terms of
the provisional measures requested by South Africa and the circumstances of the case, the Court
finds that the measures to be indicated need not be identical to those requested.

The Court considers that, with regard to the situation described above, Israel must, in
accordance with its obligations under the Genocide Convention, in relation to Palestinians in Gaza,
take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts within the scope of Article II
of this Convention, in particular: (a) killing members of the group; (b) causing serious bodily or
mental harm to members of the group; (c) deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life
calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; and (d) imposing measures
intended to prevent births within the group. The Court recalls that these acts fall within the scope of
Article II of the Convention when they are committed with the intent to destroy in whole or in part a
group as such. The Court further considers that Israel must ensure with immediate effect that its
military forces do not commit any of the above-described acts.

The Court is also of the view that Israel must take all measures within its power to prevent and
punish the direct and public incitement to commit genocide in relation to members of the Palestinian
group in the Gaza Strip.

The Court further considers that Israel must take immediate and effective measures to enable
the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to address the adverse
conditions of life faced by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Israel must also take effective measures to prevent the destruction and ensure the preservation
of evidence related to allegations of acts within the scope of Article II and Article III of the Genocide
Convention against members of the Palestinian group in the Gaza Strip.

Finally, in view of the specific provisional measures it has decided to indicate, the Court
considers that Israel must submit a report to the Court on all measures taken to give effect to this
Order within one month, as from the date of this Order. The report so provided shall then be
communicated to South Africa, which shall be given the opportunity to submit to the Court its
comments thereon.

In a nutshell...
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has decided that, before making a final decision, certain temporary measures need to be taken to protect the rights claimed by South Africa. The Court believes that, based on the information provided, there is a plausible case that Israel may be violating its obligations under the Genocide Convention in relation to Palestinians in Gaza. Therefore, the ICJ has outlined specific actions that Israel must take immediately. These actions include preventing acts that could lead to the destruction of the Palestinian group, ensuring its military forces do not commit harmful acts, preventing and punishing public incitement to commit genocide, providing basic services and humanitarian assistance to Palestinians, and preserving evidence related to allegations of genocide. Israel is also required to submit a report to the ICJ within one month, detailing the measures it has taken, and South Africa will have the opportunity to comment on this report.

This man also had a special story…

He had a near death experience from a suicide attempt in which god told him to “tell people I love them”, and he changed his life from working hard to accompanying special needs kids. I think in many ways these near death experiences are blessings.

Of course if he really saw god is debatable, he is convinced but that is his conviction based on his worldview. A Buddhist might see something quite different. The lady in the video above said hers was “her designer death”, an experience just for her.

I was just watching these NDE video’s on YouTube and it struck me…

In a way perhaps processing a spiritual experience is not so different from processing a near death experience. Both lead to questions about the meaning of our life here in this world, and turn towards helping others. The woman in the video above took some years to recover and started doing humanitarian work and creative pursuits in her spare time. I thought it was a beautiful story.

Serendipitously, I also came across a website about latihan yesterday, which is a spiritual practice about letting god or the lifeforce move and develop you from within. Many people involved in this find their life direction changes as well. It strikes me that once you have learnt to answer some of those crucial life questions, you evolve into more compassionate directions.