North West Farm Attack Sparks US Warning Over Safety of White Afrikaners in SA
- The US State Department accused South African politicians of inciting race-based violence that put Afrikaner lives and property at risk
- The allegations followed two farm attacks in October 2026, including the murder of Hannetjie van Zyl and a brutal assault on Donovan Marx
- Freedom Front Plus leader Corné Mulder urged President Ramaphosa to condemn farm murders and the controversial 'Kill the Boer' chant
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US - The United States government has publicly accused South African politicians of placing the lives of white Afrikaners in danger, linking the allegations to a wave of violent farm attacks that shocked the country in October 2026.
According to NewsDay, a US State Department spokesperson told Fox News that politicians who stoke race-based tensions had directly endangered Afrikaner lives and property. Washington called on South African officials to speak out against statements that allegedly encourage violence targeting white farmers.
Central to the US concerns was a chant, closely associated with Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema. President Cyril Ramaphosa has previously defended the chant as protected expression under the Constitution.
Farm attacks that sparked the outcry
The latest US intervention follows two separate attacks on farmers. Hannetjie van Zyl was killed, while Donovan Marx survived a brutal assault and remained in a critical condition at the time of reporting.
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The State Department also raised broader policy concerns, pointing to land expropriation without compensation and Black Economic Empowerment legislation, which it argued discriminate against Afrikaners and other minority groups.
President Donald Trump's administration reportedly called on Pretoria to classify rural crime as a priority crime and to consider alternatives to BEE ownership requirements. The spokesperson warned that South Africa's failure to engage constructively raised serious questions about the future of the bilateral relationship.
See X post about the US' response here:
Mulder calls for government action
Freedom Front Plus leader Corné Mulder added his voice to the debate, urging President Ramaphosa to publicly acknowledge farm murders and reject the controversial chant. Mulder argued that treating farm attacks as ordinary crime ignores the extreme nature of violence that rural communities face.
Mulder also drew a comparison between the government's response to femicide cases in Ekurhuleni and its handling of farm violence, arguing that both demanded the same urgency. He reminded the government of its constitutional obligation to protect all South Africans, including those living and working in farming communities.
Afriforum publishes report on farm attacks
Previously, Briefly News reported that AfriForum published a detailed report documenting patterns of extreme violence in farm attacks, arguing that victims are routinely subjected to torture before or after being robbed. The civil rights organisation's report, titled 'More than robbery: Violence during attacks on farms and smallholdings in South Africa', was released on Wednesday. It analysed 47 farm and smallholding attacks recorded between 2019 and 2025, drawing on media reports, court records, police accounts and direct testimony from victims, relatives and first responders.
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Source: Briefly News
