TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – South Africa has expelled Israel’s top diplomat and declared him persona non grata, giving him 72 hours to leave the country, the Foreign Ministry said on Friday, citing a “series of violations.”
The Israeli government was informed that its chargé d’affaires, Ariel Seidman, had been “declared persona non grata” and “required to depart from the Republic within 72 hours,” according to the ministry’s statement.
“This decisive measure follows a series of unacceptable violations of diplomatic norms and practice which pose a direct challenge to South Africa’s sovereignty,” it said.
Relations between the two countries have been deeply strained since South Africa filed a case at the International Court of Justice in 2023, arguing that Israel’s war in Gaza, an illegally occupied Palestinian territory, amounted to genocide. Israel has rejected the allegation.
The Foreign Ministry accused Israel’s embassy of repeatedly breaching diplomatic protocol, including “the repeated use of official Israeli social media platforms to launch insulting attacks” on President Cyril Ramaphosa. It also cited a “deliberate failure” to inform South Africa of “purported visits by senior Israeli officials.”
South African officials were angered by a November tweet from the Israeli Embassy that stated: “A rare moment of wisdom and diplomatic clarity from President Ramaphosa.”
Tensions escalated further this month after an Israeli delegation visited South Africa’s Eastern Cape province without government coordination, reportedly offering assistance in water management, healthcare, and agriculture.
The visit, which appeared to catch authorities off guard, was hosted by a traditional Xhosa king who had met Israeli President Isaac Herzog during a trip to Israel last December.
In its statement, the Foreign Ministry said Israeli representatives had committed actions that “represent a gross abuse of diplomatic privilege and a fundamental breach of the Vienna Convention.”
“They have systematically undermined the trust and protocols essential for bilateral relations,” it said.
Israel said it had expelled South Africa’s chargé d’affaires in retaliation.
South Africa, which is home to the largest Jewish community in sub-Saharan Africa, has long expressed support for the Palestinian cause and has been sharply critical of Israel. Pretoria has kept its embassy in Tel Aviv closed since Nov. 17, 2023.
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