The spokesperson for President Cyril Ramaphosa said they have learned that Paris has had to withdraw its invitation due to sustained pressure from the United States.
Vincent Magwenya said they have been told that the Americans threatened to boycott the G7 if South Africa was invited.
French President Emmanuel Macron personally asked Ramaphosa to take part in the G7 during the G20 summit in South Africa in November.
The official drew parallels with two previous rounds of negotiations held in the spring and winter of 2025, characterising them as deceptive.
In both instances, the official stressed, the United States had no genuine intention to engage in meaningful dialogue and subsequently carried out military aggression against Iran. (…)
The official outlined five specific conditions under which Iran would agree to end the war. These include:
– A complete halt to „aggression and assassinations“ by the enemy.
– The establishment of concrete mechanisms to ensure that the war is not reimposed on the Islamic Republic.
– Guaranteed and clearly defined payment of war damages and reparations.
– The end of the war across all fronts and for all resistance groups involved throughout the region
– Iran‘s exercise of sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz is and will remain Iran‘s natural and legal right, and it constitutes a guarantee for the implementation of the other party‘s commitments, and must be recognized.
(March 25, 2026)
Though the full 15-point plan is not yet available, it mainly focuses on Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programmes, including a demand to end uranium enrichment on Iranian soil, reported the NYT, citing sources.
“States claiming to uphold human rights, justice and the rule of law should invest their time and energy in holding to account perpetrators of egregious human rights violations, rather than targeting those investigating and exposing international crimes in an objective way,” the Committee said.
The Committee reminded States that the Special Rapporteur is mandated by the UN Human Rights Council to “investigate Israel’s violations of the principles and bases of international law, international humanitarian law and the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War … in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel since 1967.”
“Instead of demanding Ms Albanese’s resignation for performing her mandate in very challenging circumstances – including persistent intimidation, coordinated personal attacks and unlawful unilateral sanctions – these Government representatives should join forces to hold accountable, including before the International Criminal Court, leaders and officials accused of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza,” the Committee said.
The UN Coordination Committee – a body of six independent experts which coordinates and facilitates the work of Special Rapporteurs – accused European ministers of relying on „manufactured facts“.
„Instead of demanding Ms Albanese‘s resignation for performing her mandate…these government representatives should join forces to hold accountable, including before the International Criminal Court, leaders and officials accused of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza,“ the Committee said.
(February 13, 2026)
“It is reprehensible that ministers in Austria, Czechia, France, Germany and Italy have attacked the UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Francesca Albanese, based on a deliberately truncated video to misrepresent and gravely misconstrue her messages – as is clear from watching her original address in its entirety.
“The ministers that have spread disinformation must act beyond merely deleting their comments on social media – as some have done. They must publicly apologize and retract any calls for Francesca Albanese’s resignation. Their governments must also investigate how this disinformation happened with a view to preventing such situations.
“If only these ministers had been as loud and forceful in confronting a state committing genocide, unlawful occupation and apartheid as they have in attacking a UN expert. Their cowardice and refusal to hold Israel accountable stand in stark contrast to the Special Rapporteur’s unwavering commitment to speaking truth to power.
(February 15, 2026)
Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, Cuba’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, thanked African heads of state and government today via his Twitter account for the resolution condemning the US economic, commercial, and financial blockade against the island.
The Cuban foreign minister described the decision of the 39th African Union Summit, concluded in Addis Ababa, as a show of solidarity. For the seventeenth consecutive time, the summit rejected the economic, financial, and commercial policies imposed by Washington.
The resolution also demanded, for the third time, Cuba’s removal from the illegal list compiled by the U.S. State Department of countries that allegedly sponsor terrorism.
(February 15, 2026)
The resolution reaffirms, once again, the deep historical, political, and solidarity ties that unite the peoples of Africa and Cuba, and constitutes a clear expression of African support for the elimination of this policy, which they consider unjust, illegal, and contrary to the principles of international law and the sovereignty of States.
We believe that the scope of the Online Safety act is far broader and restrictive than is necessary in a free society.
For instance, the definitions in Part 2 covers online hobby forums, which we think do not have the resource to comply with the act and so are shutting down instead.
We think that Parliament should repeal the act and work towards producing proportionate legislation rather than risking clamping down on civil society talking about trains, football, video games or even hamsters because it can‘t deal with individual bad faith actors.
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