Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za
3-minute read
06 October 2025 | 13:00 CAT

📸 Dr Zanele Bikitsha on SAMA severing ties with the Israeli Medical Association, standing for medical ethics and protection of healthcare workers in Gaza.

The South African Medical Association (SAMA) has officially severed ties with the Israeli Medical Association (IMA), citing grave ethical concerns over Israel’s ongoing military assault on Gaza. The decision includes suspending bilateral relations and requesting the removal of the IMA from global medical platforms, signalling South Africa’s medical community’s condemnation of attacks on healthcare workers and infrastructure.

Dr Zanele Bikitsha, Vice Chairperson of SAMA, explained the rationale during an interview with Radio Islam International. “As medics, we have engaged with doctors on the ground in Gaza and have received alarming reports regarding attacks on medical personnel, detainees, and hospitals,” she said. “These actions violate the ethical principles we uphold, which transcend gender, religion, and nationality. It became clear that continuing our professional relationship was untenable.”

SAMA has outlined specific conditions for resuming relations with the IMA. These include: the release of detained medical teams, public condemnation of attacks on hospitals and clinics, immediate restoration of blocked emergency aid, including food and medicine, and ensuring that all detainees, Palestinian and Israeli, receive adequate medical care. “We want the IMA to actively advocate for safety and medical access in conflict zones,” Dr Bikitsha emphasised.

In a parallel move, SAMA withdrew from the Taipei Working Group, which oversees ethical standards for medical research, including new guidelines on the use of artificial intelligence and specimens. “We cannot ethically participate in a group chaired by an association implicated in attacks on healthcare,” Dr Bikitsha explained. “This decision is not a withdrawal from the World Medical Association itself, but a necessary ethical stance.”

The Vice Chairperson also highlighted the broader implications of the Gaza conflict for global medical ethics. “Hospitals, ambulances, and clinics have traditionally been safe zones in conflict. The attacks in Gaza show that no space is off-limits, which puts both patients and clinicians at unprecedented risk,” she said. “This could deter health professionals from volunteering in conflict zones, undermining humanitarian medical support.”

Dr Bikitsha clarified that SAMA’s decision is grounded in ethical principles, not politics. “We are pro-humanitarian, pro-medical ethics, and anti-war in any form. Our stance is about protecting patients and healthcare workers, and ensuring the sanctity of medical neutrality in conflict zones.”

The decisive action by SAMA underscores growing international concern about the treatment of medical personnel in war zones and sets a benchmark for ethical accountability in global medical associations.

Listen to the full interview on Sabahul Muslim with Annisa Essack and Dr Zanele Bikitsha, Vice Chairperson of SAMA.