Namibia took to a side of the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict when it was reported on August 27th that the vessel, MV Kathrin, was blocked from entering Namibian waters that were carrying weapons of mass destruction believed to be destined for Israel. Justice Minister Yvonne Dausab made the call to block the MV Kathrin from entering Namibian waters and ports, imposed by the Namibian Ports Authority. Namibian officials were advised and reminded of the international obligations under the Genocide Convention and the recent advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The Minister continues to comment throughout the article about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, stating, “…our obligation not to support or be complicit in Israeli war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, as well as its unlawful occupation of Palestine,” (Dausab).This direct statement put out by Justice Minister Yvonne Dausab clarifies Namibia’s opinion and stance on the conflict, in support of the Palestinian people, and a call to end the ongoing conflict in the region.
Namibia’s intervention encapsulates the States stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Namibia’s geographic position doesn’t create a direct involvement, as its position in South West Africa. Yet, the government still decided to take a “side,” that being the of the Palestinians. They are not the only country to take a stance during this conflict, and it won’t be the last. This political move could have a variety of different effects of what this means for Namibia and its foreign relations with other countries. This could possibly lead to an issue with the United States, as the United States has and continues to support Israel both politically and economically. On the other hand of this predicament, this proclamation of support for Hamas during this time of conflict could unite Namibia with other African countries and Middle Eastern countries.
The United States may not respond fondally to this support of Palestine, not because of the support of the Palestinian people, but rather going against Israel causes the deviation between the United States and Namibia. The real question is how will this non-geographically connected proclamation of support of the current conflict will affect Namibia’s relationship with large global powers, such as the United States, but on the other hand, this could end in a more positive relationship with other countries in the Middle East. This could cause some political gain within Middle Eastern countries that are pro-palestinian, possibly creating different alliances politically and military.This article demonstrates aspects of Namibia’s foreign policy. Foreign policy is the actions and/or decisions made by a state within the international community. This foreign policy of blocking the MV Kathrin from delivering weapons to Israel. This instatement of a blocking inevitably affected the delivery status of the weapons headed towards Israel, causing a global effect from one Foreign Policy decisions.