US Accuses South African Politicians of Endangering Afrikaner Lives After Recent Brutal Farm Attacks
The US State Department has accused South African politicians of endangering the lives and property of Afrikaners by inciting race-based violence, following two recent attacks on white farmers in North West province.
In exclusive comments to Fox News Digital, a State Department spokesperson said “the lives and property of Afrikaners have been endangered by politicians who incite race-based violence against them.”
The statement comes amid ongoing tensions between Washington and Pretoria over rural security, land policies and public rhetoric.
On 28 October 2026, 50-year-old cattle farmer Donovan Marx was attacked on his Syferfontein farm between Ventersdorp and Potchefstroom.
Three armed men in balaclavas first tied up a farmworker, then shot Marx in the upper body when he arrived in his vehicle.
They dragged him inside, restrained him, stabbed and assaulted him, and cut off both his ears before fleeing in his red Isuzu bakkie with stolen firearms.
Marx remains in stable but serious condition in intensive care at Mediclinic Potchefstroom.
Surgeons could not reattach his ears, and part of his large intestine was removed after the bullet passed through a kidney.
South African Agriculture Minister Willie Aucamp publicly condemned the “extreme cruelty” of the attack.
Two suspects have since been arrested.
In a separate incident on 5 October 2026 near Ottosdal, 55-year-old Johanna “Hannetjie” van Zyl was attacked while opening the gate at Doornpan Farm.
She was struck repeatedly over the head and neck with an iron bar.
Her husband found her and rushed her to hospital in Klerksdorp, where she died of her injuries.
Two suspects, Martin Boitumelo Mosime (28) and Moleko Sekwaage (29), face murder and robbery charges and remain in custody; a third suspect is still at large.
Ian Cameron, chair of South Africa’s parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Police, described the attacks as involving “extraordinary cruelty.”
Freedom Front Plus leader Corné Mulder said the violence exceeds ordinary crime and criticized President Cyril Ramaphosa for offering no public acknowledgment or sympathy.
The State Department said the United States has demanded that senior South African officials condemn incitement to race-based violence, particularly the chanting of “Kill the Farmer! Kill the Boer!” at mass rallies.
Ramaphosa has declined, citing a court ruling that the lyrics do not constitute hate speech.
A State Department spokesperson said South Africa’s lack of a meaningful response “made clear that the South African government does not want a constructive relationship with the United States.”
Nearly 13,000 Afrikaner refugees have been resettled in the United States this fiscal year under a program prioritizing those fleeing race-based discrimination, with another 17,500 expected next year, according to the State Department.
South African authorities have generally characterized farm attacks as part of broader high crime rates rather than racially targeted campaigns, though opposition parties and farming groups dispute that framing.
The South African government has not yet responded to the new accusations from Washington.