Johannesburg – The South African Zionist Federation (SAZF) has revealed a devastating firsthand account from a survivor who is challenging the City of Johannesburg’s proposal to rename Sandton Drive after Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine heroine Leila Khaled.
Last month, on 15 October, thousands of petitions were submitted to the Johannesburg Arts, Culture, and Heritage Office in Newtown over the proposed renaming of the drive in Sandton after Palestinian Activist Leila Khaled.
Palestinian guerrilla fighter Khaled became a household name in 1970 after she was held in the UK during the international hijacking crisis, known now as Black September.
Khaled had led an attempted hijacking of an El Al flight from Amsterdam but was overpowered and arrested on arrival in the UK.
Her colleague died in the struggle.
At least 5 500 objections to the proposed name change of Sandton Drive to Leila Khaled Drive were recorded and about 73 000 physical petitions were in favour of the name change.
In an emotional letter to Johannesburg Municipal Manager Floyd Brink, Juan Antonio Larroy Rodriguez details the horror of watching his girlfriend Carmen and 16 other Christian pilgrims murdered before his eyes during the 1972 Lod Airport massacre.
The attack was orchestrated by Khaled’s Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
“Carmen was shot multiple times, including in the head,” Rodriguez writes in his letter, describing how what should have been a peaceful pilgrimage to the Holy Land turned into an unimaginable nightmare.
“I still carry these memories, these wounds, decades later.”
SAZF lamented that the City of Johannesburg was considering honouring Khaled – “notorious as the first female airplane hijacker in history” – by renaming one of its major thoroughfares after her.
“This letter serves as a chilling reminder of who Leila Khaled really is,” said Rolene Marks, SAZF National Spokesperson.
“While Johannesburg rightfully seeks to create a more inclusive public sphere through its renaming policy, Khaled represents the absolute antithesis of the values our democracy was built upon.
“She has no connection to our city or country, and continues to advocate for violence and extremism to this day.”
Marks said South Africa, a nation working to overcome its violent past, cannot justify celebrating a figure who has dedicated her life to terrorism.
“Our constitution upholds the fundamental right to life. Honouring someone who has repeatedly violated this basic human right sends a dangerous message about who we are as a society,” Marks said.
The SAZF said it joins Rodriguez in calling for the City to abandon this proposal and instead consider honouring one of the many South African heroes who have genuinely contributed to building a more peaceful, inclusive, and democratic nation.
“There are countless South African heroes whose names could grace our streets,” Marks said.
“Why would we choose to honour someone whose only claim to fame is spreading terror and death?”
The African National Congress and the people of Palestine have strong historical ties that date back to the time of Nelson Mandela, who famously said: “We know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians.”
Meanwhile, South Africa alleges in its case before the International Court of Justice that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinians, following Hamas’s 7 October attack.
Hundreds of Hamas gunmen crossed from the Gaza Strip into southern Israel, killing about 1 200 people, mainly civilians, and taking 252 hostages back to Gaza.
More than 43 000 Palestinians – mostly women and children – have been killed in unrelenting reprisal attacks by the Israeli Defense Forces.
The health ministry in Gaza says more than 90 000 Palestinians have been injured in the Israeli attacks.
In a related matter, last week the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif.
However, Deif is widely believed to have been killed by the Israelis.
The charges stem from alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity during the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
