Overview

• The first group of 49 white South African asylum seekers arrived in the U.S. on May 12 under a controversial expedited program directed by President Trump.
• President Trump justifies the policy by citing alleged genocide against white farmers in South Africa, a claim widely dismissed by experts and the South African government as baseless.
• The U.S. National Security Council has suspended preparations for the G20 summit in Johannesburg following Trump's threat to boycott the event over South Africa's land expropriation law.
• Critics, including U.S. lawmakers and human rights advocates, accuse the administration of racial bias and inconsistency, prioritizing white South African refugees while halting asylum for other vulnerable groups.
• South African President Cyril Ramaphosa rejects claims of persecution against white South Africans, attributing their migration to resistance to constitutional reforms rather than systemic mistreatment.