International News
Trump Defends Resettling White South Africans As Refugees In US
President Donald Trump on Monday defended the decision to resettle a group of white Afrikaners in the United States as refugees, saying they were fleeing a “terrible situation” in South Africa.
Trump’s remarks to reporters at the White House came just hours before an initial group of around 50 Afrikaners was set to arrive at an airport outside Washington.
The Republican president essentially halted refugee arrivals after taking office as part of his crackdown on immigration, but is making an exception for the white South Africans, who are mainly descendants of Dutch settlers.
Trump, whose tycoon ally Elon Musk was born in South Africa, said white farmers were being killed in the country and repeated an allegation of “genocide” that has been widely dismissed as absurd.
“It’s a terrible situation taking place,” he said. “So we’ve essentially extended citizenship to those people to escape from that violence and come here.
Those being resettled just “happen to be white, but whether they’re white or black makes no difference to me,” he added.
South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, dismissed claims Afrikaners were being persecuted and said he told Trump during a telephone conversation that what he is being told about their situation “is not true”.
“A refugee is someone who has to leave their country out of fear of political persecution, religious persecution, or economic persecution. And they don’t fit that bill,” Ramaphosa said.
“We’re the only country on the continent where the colonisers came to stay and we have never driven them out of our country,” he added at a forum in Abidjan.
South African Foreign Minister, Ronald Lamola, also scoffed at claims that white Afrikaners, mainly descendants of Dutch settlers, face persecution or are being targeted for murder.
Most victims of killings in South Africa are young black men in urban areas, according to official data.
“The crime that we have in South Africa affects everyone irrespective of race and gender,” Lamola said.
‘Beyond absurd’
The group of 49 people left Johannesburg airport on a chartered flight on Sunday and are due to land Monday afternoon at Dulles Airport in Virginia.
Under eligibility guidelines published by the US embassy, applicants must either be of Afrikaner ethnicity or belong to a racial minority in South Africa.
They must also “be able to articulate a past experience of persecution or fear of future persecution”.
Trump and Musk have accused the South African government of targeting Afrikaners with a controversial land seizure law enacted this year.
On Monday, Trump threatened not to attend an upcoming G20 summit in South Africa unless the “situation is taken care of”.
America’s biggest trading partner in Africa is also under fire from Washington for leading a case at the International Court of Justice accusing US ally, Israel, of “genocidal” acts in its Gaza offensive, a claim Israel denies.
Many have expressed bemusement that whites could be assigned victim status in South Africa.
Prominent Afrikaner author, Max du Preez, said the resettlement was “beyond absurd.”
“This is about Trump and MAGA, not about us. It’s about their hatred for DEI,” he told AFP, referring to diversity programmes that have become a Trump target.
“The people who have now fled have probably been motivated by financial considerations and/or an unwillingness to live in a post-apartheid society where whites no longer call the shots,” he said.
Whites, who make up 7.3 percent of the population, generally enjoy a higher standard of living than the Black majority.
They still own two-thirds of farmland and, on average, earn three times as much as black South Africans.
Mainly Afrikaner-led governments imposed the race-based apartheid system that denied the black majority political and economic rights until it was voted out in 1994.
Manuel Neuer has been called up to Germany’s World Cup squad – two years after his international retirement.
The 40-year-old was named as part of Julian Nagelsmann’s 26-man squad for the tournament this summer, having not featured for his country since Euro 2024.
Among the list include Premier League players Malick Thiaw and Nick Woltemade – both of Newcastle – Arsenal striker Kai Havertz, Liverpool midfielder Florian Wirtz and Brighton’s Pascal Gross.
Injured duo Serge Gnabry and Anton Stach and forwards Karim Adeyemi, Kevin Schade and Niclas Fullkrug are among those to miss out.
Germany’s World Cup squad in full
Goalkeepers: Oliver Baumann (Hoffenheim), Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Alexander Nubel (Stuttgart)
Defenders: Waldemar Anton (Borussia Dortmund), Nathaniel Brown (Eintracht Frankfurt), David Raum (RB Leipzig), Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid), Nico Schlotterbeck (Borussia Dortmund), Jonathan Tah (Bayern Munich), Malick Thiaw (Newcastle)
Midfielders: Pascal Gross (Brighton), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Felix Nmecha (Borussia Dortmund), Aleksandar Pavlovic (Bayern Munich), Angelo Stiller (Stuttgart), Leon Goretzka (Bayern Munich), Florian Wirtz (Liverpool), Jamie Leweling (Stuttgart)
Forwards: Maximilian Beier (Borussia Dortmund), Kai Havertz (Arsenal), Lennart Karl (Bayern Munich), Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich), Leroy Sane (Galatasaray), Deniz Undav (Stuttgart), Nick Woltemade (Newcastle)
Former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has opened up on the club’s decision to appoint Xabi Alonso as their new manager.
The Blues confirmed the Spaniard as their next head coach following the conclusion of the 2025-26 season, with Alonso set to take charge ahead of the upcoming campaign.
Mikel had previously been vocal about Chelsea’s managerial philosophy, urging the club’s ownership to move away from short-term head coaches and interim appointments and instead bring in a proper manager with full control over the squad
Speaking on his most recent podcast, Mikel said:
“I am glad the owners listened to me, and listened to the fans.
“Forget about coaches, what we have always had are managers, and what we need is a manager who decides on the players he wants out and the players who can stay.
“We need a strong personality, and that is what we have got now in Alonso.
“That title has been changed from coach to manager, but I hope it’s not just words and he is actually allowed to manage the squad. But I am very happy with the appointment.”
Chelsea are still in the hunt for Europa League football, and a win over Sunderland on the final day of the Premier League season would go a long way in determining whether Alonso inherits a European stage to build on next season.
Enzo Maresca is believed to have signed a three-year deal to replace outgoing Man City manager Pep Guardiola, after it was revealed that the legendary head coach will be leaving the Etihad at the end of the season.
Speculation around Guardiola’s departure date has been rife as the season draws to a close, despite the Catalan having one year left on his contract.
According to report, Man City’s sponsors were among those to have been told that Guardiola will be calling time on a remarkable trophy-ladened spell on Sunday.
The report also shared that Maresca, Guardiola’s former assistant, was a front-runner for the vacant spot at the dugout, with Fabrizio Romano confirming on Tuesday morning that the ex-Chelsea manager will be taking over.
The Italian head coach has been out of work since his mutual departure from Stamford Bridge under strained circumstances on January 1.
But even before his acrimonious mid-season exit, Maresca has been viewed as a long-term successor to Guardiola following their stint working together at Man City.
The 46-year-old served as Guardiola’s assistant between 2022 and 2023 after previously coaching Man City’s youth sides, before departing to earn Championship promotion with Leicester.
Maresca then went on to win the Uefa Conference League and the Club World Cup with Chelsea during his 18-month spell in west London.
Guardiola is set to celebrate his time in English football with an open-top bus parade in Manchester after winning the Carabao Cup and FA Cup this season, but until Monday night, the manager had been notably vague over his future plans.
But before news broke of his shock exit, Guardiola had been keen to tamp down any suggestions that he would be commemorated with any fanfare.
‘The club don’t have to do anything, honestly,’ Guardiola, who has yet to officially confirm his departure, said. ‘The important thing in our lives is that when you look back, you can look with a big smile and say “that was good”.
‘Bernardo (Silva) and John (Stones) can feel that. We spoke about it over the last few days. When you’re old, a grandfather, you can look at the memories. That is the most important thing in life.’
Tired of addressing his contractual situation, Guardiola added with a dose of sarcasm: ‘Whatever happens at the end of the season – and when I extend my contract for three more years – I can look back and say, “how nice has that been?”
‘That is the most important thing by far. Most of the people who lived this time here together can feel it.’
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