Supporters of the BDS movement in South Africa. Photo: Twitter screenshot.

A top South African Jewish group expressed disappointment on Wednesday after the nation’s government expressed opposition to Israel’s new status as an observer state in the African Union.

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) told AU chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat that Israel’s admittance was a “bold and far-sighted decision,” but criticized the South African government for opposing it.

SAJBD’s National Chairperson, Shaun Zagnoev, said he was “disappointed by the negative reaction by the South African government, which we would have hoped would have embraced this as an opportunity for constructive engagement and dialogue.”

There has also been local opposition to Israel rejoining the AU, with South Africa’s Mercury news reporting that Iqbal Jassat — an executive member of the Muslim advocacy group Media Review Network — recently calling on Mahamat to “rescind the decision without delay.”

“Dismay, resentment, and dissatisfaction against allowing the Zionist colonial regime access to the AU is shared by us,” he wrote in a letter to the AU chief, alleging that allowing Israel into the body had caused “widespread outrage.”

Reports emerged on Tuesday that Algeria has formed a bloc of African countries working to remove Israel’s new observer status, including South Africa.

Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra charged that “the African Union’s acceptance of Israel as an observer member aims to strike the stability of Algeria, which stands with Palestine and just causes.”

Israel announced last month that it would receive observer status in the 55-member AU, after nearly 20 years outside the group.

Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said at the time, “This corrects the anomaly that has existed for almost two decades and is an important part of strengthening the fabric of Israel’s foreign relations. It will help us strengthen our activities on the African continent and with the member states of the organization.”