South Africa and Israel Expel Each Other's Top Diplomats in Escalating Row

2026-02-01 region

Cape Town, 1 February 2026
Diplomatic relations between South Africa and Israel have reached a new low as both countries simultaneously expelled each other’s highest-ranking envoys within 72 hours. The crisis erupted when South Africa declared Israeli chargé d’affaires Ariel Seidman persona non grata for allegedly insulting President Cyril Ramaphosa on social media and coordinating unauthorised visits by Israeli officials. Israel immediately retaliated by expelling South Africa’s Palestine representative Shaun Edward Byneveldt. This dramatic escalation stems from South Africa’s ongoing genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice over Gaza operations, marking the most severe diplomatic breakdown between the nations since South Africa’s apartheid era.

The Immediate Diplomatic Fallout

On 30 January 2026, South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation declared Ariel Seidman persona non grata, giving him 72 hours to leave the country [1][2][3]. Seidman, who served as Israel’s chargé d’affaires, was accused of ‘unacceptable violations of diplomatic norms and practice which pose a direct challenge to South Africa’s sovereignty’ [4]. The South African foreign ministry specifically cited ‘the repeated use of official Israeli social media platforms to launch insulting attacks against His Excellency President Cyril Ramaphosa’ and ‘a deliberate failure to inform DIRCO of purported visits by senior Israeli officials’ [5][6]. These actions were characterised as representing ‘a gross abuse of diplomatic privilege and a fundamental breach of the Vienna Convention’ [2].

Israel’s Swift Retaliation

Within hours of South Africa’s announcement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar responded with reciprocal action [1]. Israel declared Shaun Edward Byneveldt, South Africa’s ambassador to Palestine based in Ramallah, persona non grata and ordered him to leave Israel within 72 hours [3][7]. The Israeli government justified the expulsion as a response to ‘South Africa’s false attacks against Israel in the international arena and the unilateral, baseless step taken’ against Seidman [1][8]. Israeli officials indicated that ‘additional steps will be considered in due course’ [2], suggesting the diplomatic crisis may escalate further.

The Root of the Diplomatic Crisis

The immediate trigger for the expulsions stemmed from unauthorised diplomatic activities involving King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo, a traditional South African monarch and nephew of Nelson Mandela [1]. In December 2025, Dalindyebo visited Israel and met with high-ranking officials, including Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, without the knowledge of the South African government [4][1]. Following his return, an Israeli delegation visited Dalindyebo’s home province of the Eastern Cape on 27 January 2026, promising aid in ‘concrete assistance in water, health and agriculture’ [1][4]. Eastern Cape Premier Lubabalo Oscar Mabuyane rejected what he termed ‘the sinister deal between the king and Israel, and views these actions as an attempt by the Israeli government to undermine the sovereign right of the Republic of South Africa to manage its international affairs’ [4].

Long-standing Tensions Over Gaza

The diplomatic row occurs against the backdrop of severely strained relations since South Africa filed a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice in December 2023 [2][4][5]. The ICJ ruled in January 2024 that the genocide claim was ‘plausible’ [4]. South Africa’s case centres on Israel’s military operations in Gaza, where Israeli attacks have killed at least 71,660 people since October 2023 [2]. Israel has consistently rejected these allegations as baseless, with officials describing the case as making ‘a mockery’ of what constitutes genocide [5]. The two countries have been without full ambassadorial representation since South Africa withdrew its ambassador to Israel in 2018 following what it termed Israel’s ‘indiscriminate deadly attack on civilians in Gaza’, and Israel recalled its ambassador to South Africa in 2023 after the ICJ case was filed [1][6].

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diplomatic relations genocide accusations