#Trump ordered a halt to refugee admissions into the US after taking office in 2025 as part of his crackdown on #legal & illegal #immigration. But weeks later, he launched an effort to bring in white South Africans of #Afrikaner ethnicity as “ #refugees”, falsely claiming they had been violently persecuted in the majority-Black country. #SouthAfrica's government has rejected that claim, & refugee advocates have criticized the Trump policy.
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The new target, contained in a previously unreported document from the #US #State Department dated January 27, signals a push to ramp up #white admissions from #SouthAfrica, while #refugee applications from other areas have been severely curtailed.
#Trump has said the #US would only admit 7,500 total #refugees from around the world in fiscal year 2026, while a much higher cap of 40,000 to 60,000 was discussed internally last year. Only 2,000 #white #SouthAfricans had entered the US as refugees as of January 31 under a program launched in May 2025, although the pace has picked up in recent months.
The hypocritical target could also face administrative delays in Washington, which in recent weeks have halted all #refugee travel to the #US, including #white #SouthAfricans, according to a US official familiar with the matter.
#Trump ordered a halt to refugee admissions into the US after taking office in 2025 as part of his crackdown on #legal & illegal #immigration. But weeks later, he launched an effort to bring in white South Africans of #Afrikaner ethnicity as “ #refugees”, falsely claiming they had been violently persecuted in the majority-Black country. #SouthAfrica's government has rejected that claim, & refugee advocates have criticized the Trump policy.
…South African Foreign Ministry spokesperson Chrispin Phiri said his government would not interfere with the #US program if it remained within #legal boundaries, while reiterating Pretoria's rejection of Trump's claims about #white #SouthAfricans.
"The assertion that #Afrikaners face systemic persecution is fundamentally unsubstantiated," he said.