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Nicholas Woode-Smith

Mar 16, 2025, 5:29 PM

Mandela’s Grandson Supports Extremism

The South African Union Buildings in Pretoria. The South African government has repeatedly engaged in anti-Israel "lawfare", with many prominent politicians maintaining links with extremist organisations (Davinci77, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons)

What would late South African president Nelson Mandela think of his grandson, Zwelivelile "Mandla" Mandela’s, disgraceful support of violent extremism and Islamic terrorism? While Nelson Mandela was sympathetic to the Palestinian cause, he also recognized the legitimacy of Zionism and...

Nicholas Woode-Smith

Mar 7, 2025, 9:41 PM

Hague Group’s Anti-Israel Agenda Demands Scrutiny

President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa co-published an article on Foreign Policy condemning Israel for allegedly violating international law. (Wikimedia Commons)

South African president Cyril Ramaphosa’s Foreign Policy article, co-written by Anwar Ibrahim (Prime Minister of Malaysia), Gustavo Petro (President of Columbia), and Varsha Gandikota-Nellutla (a left-wing policy advisor and co-general coordinator of Progressive International), spreads misinformation about Israel, while...

Feb 20, 2025, 3:30 PM

Remembering, forgetting and distorting the past

Freud and Santayana delivered the same mantra: those who forget the past are destined to repeat it. True, but the aphorism also truncates a more complex process. Our personal past differs from our collective past and ‘never the twain...

Ilan Preskovsky

Jan 2, 2025, 10:42 PM

Humanitarian Organization or Front for Terror?

A small disclaimer: I originally wrote this for a South African audience who are frequently ignorant or misinformed about the situation in Israel, and I would still like it to be read by such people, so please pardon any...

Dec 16, 2024, 4:32 AM

The Power and Powerlessness of Yiddish Invective

I was raised in a two-tone world of Yiddish (the Lithuanian variety) and English (the South African variety). Consequently, I became attuned from an early age to two separate modes of communication, each with its distinctive emotional resonance. My...

Dec 4, 2024, 4:20 PM

Losing at a game of Juden Raus

It took me a good part of the last year to realize that I was playing the game a “Juden Raus!” and that I was losing. It took me months to understand that I was never a member of...

Warwick Sneider

Nov 26, 2024, 8:48 PM

Sense of SA Jewish Community Since Oct 7

October 7 2023 is a day that Jewish communities all over the are still dealing with. The South African community is no different. We have been made to question our sense of security and belonging which has come about due...

Todd L. Pittinsky

Nov 26, 2024, 7:35 PM

A Court of Convenience

This week the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, accusing them of war crimes in Gaza. On the surface, this announcement projects an image of legal...

Nov 21, 2024, 3:36 AM

US imposes sanctions on Hamas’s Basem Naim

Basem Naim, a Hamas leader who is a former Gaza health minister speaking during a press conference in Cape Town on November 29.

Few alliances have raised as many eyebrows as South Africa's relationship with Hamas. Once a beacon of peace and reconciliation, South Africa’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) now finds itself at odds with its own legacy by openly aligning...

Warwick Sneider

Nov 20, 2024, 9:18 PM

Living as a Jew in South Africa

As you may imagine, living as a Jew in South Africa since October 7 has become incredibly difficult. It’s no secret that the South African government is one of Hamas’ closest allies. After all, they brought the International Court of...

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