Johannesburg - South African President Kgalema Motlanthe on Friday criticized the United Nations Security Council over the crisis in the Middle East and said the world body was in need of "urgent reform" to ensure that it becomes more representative.

"The problem is that if a country has powerful friends on the Security Council, they can sometimes act with impunity," Motlanthe told the weekly Mail and Guardian newspaper.

"All you have to do is listen to the minister of foreign affairs or defence of Israel to know that you are dealing with people who believe they can cock a snook with impunity," he added.

The original UN mandate was "meant to give equal treatment and protection to even the smallest and weakest countries," he said.

Motlanthe called Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip "sheer savagery."

"The killing of women and children and innocent people leaves all decent human beings with a deep sense of revulsion," he said. (dpa)