Once again, an Israeli ambassador was removed from an African Union meeting. This time, the Israeli ambassador to Ethiopia, Avraham Neguise, was expelled from the Mandela Hall at the African Union headquarters yesterday, according to a news report by Al Jazeera.
The ambassador was expelled after several African countries objected to his participation in an annual meeting about the genocide that took place in Rwanda, The Palestine Chronicle reported.
The participation of the Israeli ambassador was unexpected, according to Al Jazeera’s correspondent, who spoke to diplomatic sources at the meeting.
The sources said that delegations from several African countries objected to his presence, and the meeting was paused until his departure.
The African Union is reportedly conducting an investigation to determine who invited him.
In 2002, after the establishment of the African Union, observer status was granted to non-member countries from outside Africa, totaling 87 countries.
The privileges of observer status include attending African Union meetings and participating in certain discussions, but it does not grant the right to vote.
The first entity granted observer status was the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) in 1973, which enjoys strong support from most African countries.
In recent years, Israel has sought observer status at the African Union to counter Palestinian influence and managed to obtain observer status in 2021.
However, Israel was later expelled by a decision of African countries due to its violation of the African Union Charter’s conditions for observer membership.
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