Ebrahim Rasool, the South African ambassador to the US who was declared persona non grata by the Trump administration, has been greeted by crowds at the airport welcoming him home, with some admirers waving Palestinian flags and chanting “Free Palestine”, Al Jazeera reports.

“As we stand here, the bombing [in Gaza] has continued and the shooting has continued, and if South Africa was not in the [ICJ], Israel would not be exposed, and the Palestinians would have no hope,” Rasool said after arriving in Cape Town.

“We cannot sacrifice the Palestinians … but we will also not give up with our relationship with the United States. We must fight for it, but we must keep our dignity.”