Pretoria - South Africa on Wednesday joined the world community in mourning the passing of former Israeli President Shimon Peres.
South Africa paid tribute to Peres, saying he was a great statesman and an architect of peace.
In a statement, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation said Peres will be remembered for his unwavering commitment to the two-state solution with Palestine, “which unfortunately is still to be achieved”.
The department said Peres was a rare breed of politician, who allowed reason to transform his thinking on the question of Palestinian Statehood.
Peres was a Nobel Peace Prize laureate and one of the most central figures in Israeli politics. He passed away at the age of 93 early Wednesday morning after suffering a major stroke more than two weeks ago.
He will be remembered for the leading role he played in the development and fruition of the Oslo Accord with the late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, for which they were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994.
South Africa called on both the Israelis and Palestinians to return to genuine negotiations in order to accomplish and realise the vision that Presidents Arafat, Rabin, and Peres started in Oslo more than 20 years ago.
“This will be a fitting tribute to the life and memory of President Peres,” the department said.
Peres visited South Africa last year. - SAnews.gov.za
