South Africa's expulsion of the Israeli chargé d'affaires and Israel's reciprocal response emphasise a collapse in relations. These 'persona non grata' declarations are symptoms of an ideological war of attrition over the Gaza conflict.

Tit-for-tat declarations of persona non grata reveal the depth of the collapse of relations between Israel and South Africa. But, until more fundamental issues are resolved, these expulsions are the symptom of a deeper divide, not its cause.

The phrase "persona non grata" has been a headline in South Africa. What does the phrase mean, and why does it matter here and now?

Have the tit-for-tat expulsions of two diplomats become a problem in South African-Israeli relations or, rather, is it actually symptomatic of a much larger malaise? The answer, of course, is the latter. In medical terms, it might be something like an acute fever indicating a serious, deeper, underlying condition.

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What exactly does it mean for a diplomat's continuing presence in a country to become "persona non grata", and how does it fit into the range of tools in diplomatic relations?

The phrase persona non grata is Latin, meaning an "unwelcome person." In diplomatic practice, it refers to a foreign official, an ambassador or any other staff member deemed unacceptable by a host country and thus prohibited from entering or staying in his or her assigned host nation.

Grave rebuke

It is the most serious censure a host...