Trump was responding to a new law in South Africa that gives the government powers in some instances to expropriate land from people. The White House said the law “blatantly discriminates against ethnic minority Afrikaners.”
The Expropriation Act was signed into law by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa last month and allows the government to take land in specific instances where it is not being used, or where it would be in the public interest if it is redistributed.
It aims to address some of the wrongs of South Africa's racist apartheid era, when Black people had land taken away from them and were forced to live in areas designated for non-whites.
Elon Musk, a close Trump ally and head of Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency, has highlighted that law in recent social media posts and cast it as a threat to South Africa's white minority.
The order also references South Africa’s role in bringing accusations of genocide against Israel before the International Court of Justice.
The halt in foreign aid to South Africa comes amid a broader pause to most U.S. overseas assistance under Trump, as he looks to shift to what he calls an “America First” foreign policy.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP