'Hates America, President Trump': US expels South African ambassador Ebrahim Rasool amid tensions

Washington, DC US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has declared South African Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool' 'persona non grata,' accusing him of 'hating' America and former President Donald Trump. " South Africa's Ambassador to the United States is no longer welcome in our great country. Ebrahim Rasool is a race- baiting politician who hates America and hates@POTUS. We've nothing to bandy with him and so he's considered PERSONA NON GRATA," Rubio posted on X.

South Africa's Ambassador to the United States is no longer welcome in our great country.

Ebrahim Rasool is a race-baiting politician who hates America and hates @POTUS.

We have nothing to discuss with him and so he is considered PERSONA NON GRATA.https://t.co/mnUnwGOQdx

— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) March 14, 2025

Why was Rasool expelled?

Rubio's decision follows a report linking Rasool’s once statements to allegations that Trump led a" white racist movement" in the US and encyclopedically. While the US State Department didn't give farther details, reports indicate that Rubio made the advertisement while returning from a G7 foreign ministers’ meeting in Quebec, Canada.

Unusual politic move

The expatriation of a foreign envoy is rare for the US, however lower- ranking diplomats are occasionally targeted with persona non grata status. Rubio's decision also comes amid rising pressures between the US and South Africa after Trump halted aid to the country over its controversial land reform law.

South Africa responds

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office called the decision" tragic ," issuing a statement admitting the US action." The Presidency has noted the tragic regrettable expulsion of South Africa's Ambassador to the United States of America, Mr. Ebrahim Rasool." Rasool, presently serving his alternate term as South Africa’s US minister, preliminarily held the position from 2010 to 2015.

The move follows a analogous politic contestation in New Zealand, where the government fired its envoy to the UK for commentary critical of Trump.