Israel expels South Africa ambassador Shaun Byneveldt in 72-hour retaliatory move

Israel has declared South Africa’s senior diplomatic representative, Shaun Edward Byneveldt, persona non grata and ordered him to leave the country within 72 hours. This move follows Pretoria’s decision on Friday, 30 January 2026, to expel Israel’s chargé d’affaires, Ariel Seidman.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar finalised the decision after accusing South Africa of “false attacks” in the international arena.

The Israeli foreign affairs ministry announced the retaliation on Friday afternoon via its official X (formerly Twitter) account.

Earlier, South Africa had accused Seidman of “unacceptable violations of diplomatic norms” and launching “insulting attacks” against President Cyril Ramaphosa on social media.

Israel retaliates to South Africa’s diplomatic move

The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the action against Byneveldt as a response to a “unilateral, baseless step” taken against Seidman. The Israeli government also warned that “additional steps will be considered in due course” as the diplomatic rift between the two nations deepens.

In response on X, Chrispin Phiri, spokesperson for South Africa’s minister of International Relations and Cooperation, noted that Israel’s “obstructionism” forced a “farcical arrangement” where Byneveldt was accredited through the very state occupying his host country, Palestine.

Byneveldt serves as the ambassador to the State of Palestine and is based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israel’s administrative control forces him to reside within territory it occupies.

Cause of strained relations

Bilateral ties have reached a historical low following South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Pretoria has accused the Israeli military of state-led genocide in Gaza, a claim Israel continues to reject as “baseless”.