South Africa has expelled Israel’s highest-ranking diplomat, leading to a reciprocal response
South Africa declared the highest-ranking diplomat at Israel’s embassy as persona non grata on Friday mandating his departure within 72 hours. This action may further strain relations with the United States.
Israel swiftly responded by designating South Africa’s senior diplomatic representative, Minister Shaun Edward Byneveldt, as persona non grata and providing him with the same deadline to depart.
The relationship between the countries has become tense following South Africa’s decision to file a genocide case regarding Israel’s actions in Gaza at the International Court of Justice. Israel has dismissed the case as unfounded.
The genocide case has further fueled U.S. President Donald Trump’s criticisms of Pretoria, which include verbal reprimands, trade sanctions, and an executive order from last year that eliminated all U.S. funding.
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South Africa’s foreign ministry announced that it had instructed Israeli chargé d’affaires Ariel Seidman to depart due to “unacceptable violations of diplomatic norms and practice,” which included disrespecting President Cyril Ramaphosa on social media.
The statement did not identify the specific social media posts that had caused offence, but one possible source was a November post on X where the Israeli embassy account stated: “A rare moment of wisdom and diplomatic clarity from President Ramaphosa.”
The South African statement further alleged that Seidman had a “deliberate failure” to inform South African authorities regarding visits from high-ranking Israeli officials.
Israel’s foreign ministry announced on X that it is expelling South Africa’s representative “in response to South Africa’s unfounded attacks against Israel in the international arena and the unilateral, baseless action taken against (Israel’s) Chargé d’Affaires”.
In 2023, South African lawmakers voted to close the Israeli embassy in Pretoria and suspend diplomatic relations due to the war in Gaza; however, this decision was never put into action.
We sincerely hope that the Israeli embassy will interact with us in a respectful way, and that they will send a representative who will engage with respect and prioritize diplomacy. “That is what we intend to do,” stated Chrispin Phiri, spokesperson for South Africa’s foreign ministry, during an interview on the television channel Newzroom Afrika.
