Dirco ordered Ariel Seidman to leave the country within 72 hours after accusing him of violations that challenge South Africa’s sovereignty.

The United States (US) State Department has questioned South Africa’s foreign policies after the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) declared Ariel Seidman, the chargé d’affaires at the Israeli Embassy in Pretoria, persona non grata.

In March last year, the American government expelled South Africa’s Ambassador, Ebrahim Rasool, following comments about the Trump administration.

Last week, Dirco ordered Seidman to leave the country within 72 hours after accusing him of violations that challenge South Africa’s sovereignty.

“These violations include the repeated use of official Israeli social media platforms to launch insulting attacks against President Cyril Ramaphosa, and a deliberate failure to inform Dirco of purported visits by senior Israeli officials,” Dirco spokesperson Phiri said.

‘Poor foreign policy’

The US, which is a staunch ally of Israel, was not happy, with the State Department principal deputy spokesperson Tommy Pigott slamming the move.

“South Africa’s recent decision to expel Israel’s top diplomat is another example of its poor foreign policy choices.

“Expelling a diplomat for calling out the African National Congress party’s ties to Hamas and other antisemitic radicals prioritises grievance politics over the good of South Africa and its citizens,” Piggot said.

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SA foreign policy

In 2024, President Cyril Ramaphosa reaffirmed South Africa’s foreign policy as a vital element of the country’s progress, rooted in principles of “active non-alignment”.

“Since the advent of democracy, South Africa’s foreign policy has been based on what our forebears inscribed in the Freedom Charter in 1955, when they declared that: “South Africa shall be a fully independent state which respects the rights and the sovereignty of all nations; South Africa shall strive to maintain world peace and the settlement of all international disputes by negotiation – not war,” Ramaphosa said.

The president echoed Pretoria’s stance again in 2025, saying that South Africa’s foreign policy is not determined by outside forces and will always be shaped by national interests and constitutional values.

“South Africa’s National Interest Framework Policy Document, published in 2022, is clear that it is in the country’s national interest to forge strategic alliances that support economic partnerships and trading arrangements that favour, advance, and safeguard our national interest,” Ramaphosa said.

Link to Hamas

In terms of Piggot’s claims of links to Hamas, Pretoria has consistently denied having direct ties with Hamas, stating that its support is for the Palestinian people and the Palestinian Authority, not the militant group.

Despite these denials, reports in 2025 emerged regarding a potential US lawsuit alleging South African officials had advance knowledge of or collaborated with Hamas and Iran, which the government dismissed as “unverified assertions.”

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Hamas officials

In 2023, senior Hamas officials denied they have a relationship with the South African government.

Senior Hamas leader, Ismail Haniyeh, was reported to have sent a message to South Africa’s then-minister of international relations and cooperation, Naledi Pandor, asking her for humanitarian aid in Gaza.

This was how Pandor set out to clarify a record of a phone call between herself and the Hamas leader. She said the call was in response to Haniyeh’s request for assistance in Gaza, rather than an expression of support for any actions on the ground.

“As a political party, Hamas does not have relations with the government of South Africa. However, Hamas has a relationship with the African National Congress (ANC) and with civil society parties and organisations,”  Emad Saber from the South African Hamas office said in a written reply.

ANC meets Hamas

Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said the government had no plans to meet the Hamas officials, but did not rule out the possibility.

However, the ANC did meet the Hamas delegation, which was shared by secretary-general Fikile Mbalula on X.

“This afternoon, the ANC delegation and the general-secretary of SACP, Solly Mapaila, held a bilateral meeting with the Hamas and Fatah delegations of Palestine at Chief Albert Luthuli House.

“As the ANC, we support the Palestinian people. We have been clear on our stance even when we received attacks on it. The Palestinian people must be supported until their freedom is attained. Even as we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Passing of Madiba, the People of Palestine are not free, and the Sahrawi People are also not free. This must come to an end!” Mbalula tweeted.

Israel retaliates

Following Dirco’s decision ordering Seideman to leave the country, Israel declared South Africa’s senior diplomatic representative persona non grata and gave him 72 hours to leave.

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar decided – following South Africa’s false attacks against Israel in the international arena and the unilateral, baseless step taken against the chargé d’affaires of Israel in South Africa – that South Africa’s senior diplomatic representative, Minister Shaun Edward Byneveldt, is persona non grata and must leave Israel within 72 hours.

“Additional steps will be considered in due course,” the ministry said.

Byneveldt is South Africa’s ambassador to the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah.

Relations

Phiri responded to Tel Aviv’s decision to declare Byneveldt persona non grata.

“Mr Shaun Byneveldt is the ambassador to the State of Palestine, not Israel. Israel’s obstructionism forces a farcical arrangement where he is accredited through the very state that occupies his host country. This underscores Israel’s refusal to honour international consensus on Palestinian statehood.”

Relations between Pretoria and Tel Aviv deteriorated after Israel launched military attacks on Gaza after Hamas’ 7 October 2023 attacks.

In November 2023, South Africa withdrew its diplomats, while Israel’s Foreign Ministry recalled its ambassador to South Africa, Eliav Belotserkovsky, for consultations.

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