The South African Friends of Israel (SAFI) is troubled by the revelations circulating on social media, first raised by Visegrád 24, that allege South Africa has become a base of operations for the Muslim Brotherhood–Iran axis of power.
“Through this network, the Axis has used international institutions and legal channels to wage ideological warfare against the West and the State of Israel. According to the thread, the United Nations, under Secretary-General António Guterres has nurtured ties with the Muslim Brotherhood through its late spiritual leader Yusuf al-Qaradawi and has allowed Islamist-aligned NGOs to operate within its ecosystem. This alleged “UN–Qatar–Hamas nexus,” the Visegrád 24 thread claims, has found haven in South Africa, where a new Brotherhood base has been established to conduct lawfare against Israel and Western democracies,” says Bafana Modise, Spokesperson for SAFI.
While these claims are alleged, it remains plausible when comparing it to the trajectory of the ANC government’s foreign policy. Over the past decade, the ANC has gradually transformed South Africa from a principled, constitutional democracy into a purveyor of products for authoritarian and theocratic regimes.
Modise adds that “South Africa’s diplomatic flirtation with Iran, the world’s chief sponsor of terrorism, has been disgraceful: hosting delegations, celebrating strategic partnerships, and discussing nuclear cooperation while Tehran funds Hamas and Hezbollah, increasing South Africa’s complicity in global terror.”
When the ANC dragged Israel to the International Court of Justice, it was not acting as a neutral moral voice but as an ideological proxy for Iran and Hamas. The move was celebrated in Tehran and Doha, where state media characterised South Africa as the guardian of a global campaign to delegitimise Israel through international law. What should have been a proud moment of legal activism became a propaganda victory for the very forces that encouraged and supported the October 7th attacks and conflict since then.
“Meanwhile, the ANC has excused Russia, embraced China, and shunned Western democracies whose trade and investment still sustain our economy. The ANC conveniently remains silent on the repression of women in Iran, the massacre of civilians in Syria, the genocide of Christians in Nigeria, and the persecution of minorities in China. The moral clarity that once defined South Africa’s foreign policy under Mandela has been replaced by opportunism, hypocrisy, and anti-Western resentment, and endangerment of South Africans,” Modise clarifies.
This pattern of conduct gives credibility to the latest allegations levelled against South Africa. When the government befriends Iran, defends Hamas, and attacks Israel while turning a blind eye to Islamist extremism, it cannot feign surprise when the world begins to suspect that South Africa has become the Brotherhood’s new strategic node. The ANC has allowed our legal institutions to be weaponised for ideological warfare and has tarnished the reputation of our courts, our diplomats, and our people.
South Africa was once the conscience of the world. Today, under the ANC, it risks becoming the world’s most useful idiot, relegated as a mere pawn in the geopolitical schemes of players who despise everything our Constitution stands for. The government’s choices have turned South Africa from moral leader to moral accomplice, the mask of democracy lifted to reveal diplomatic pariah.
“Our current foreign policy is even more ludicrous when one considers the massive contribution that Western democracies have made to South Africa, versus close to nothing from the Islamist extremist axis – other than allegedly bailing the ANC out of its financial crisis” states Modise.
“It is time to confront this betrayal. South Africans must demand that their country withdraw from the ecosystem of ideological warfare. Our nation does not belong to Iran, to the Muslim Brotherhood, or to the corrupt elites who trade our sovereignty for personal patronage. South Africa belongs to its people and to those who fought for freedom. It is long past time we reclaimed it,” Modise concludes.
