— The United States government has lodged a formal complaint against the South African government, accusing officials of harassment and doxxing American staff working with white Afrikaners.
The charges were made by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday, following the expulsion of seven Kenyan nationals who were assisting with Afrikaner relocations in South Africa. South Africa has maintained that the individuals, who entered the country on tourist visas, are ineligible to work.
According to the South African government, no US officials were arrested during the raid, which was not conducted at a diplomatic site. Rubio’s statement alleged that US nationals had been briefly detained and that their passport information had been leaked, describing this as “an unacceptable form of harassment.”He warned that failure by the South African Government to hold those responsible accountable would result in severe consequences.
The incident follows months of pressure from the Trump administration on the South African government, which it claims is tacitly supporting the persecution of white Afrikaner farmers. Despite previous denials by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and other officials, the Trump administration has continued to relocate members of the Afrikaner community through the US refugee program.
The situation has drawn international attention, with rights groups decrying the administration’s refugee admittance policies, which have dropped to a historic low of 7,500 for 2026.
The Trump administration has also previously expelled South Africa’s ambassador to the US, boycotted the G20 summit in Johannesburg, and excluded South Africa from the event next year in Miami. Further details are expected as the situation develops.
