South African opposition leader Julius Malema sentenced to five years for illegal firearm possession

Roelf Meyer appointed South Africa's new ambassador to the US

South African president Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed Roelf Meyer as the new ambassador to the United States. Meyer, who previously served in the last apartheid-era government as constitutional affairs minister, played a key role alongside Ramaphosa in mediating the talks to end apartheid in the 1990s. He was the chief representative of the National Party, while Ramaphosa represented the ANC. The two formed a lifelong friendship during this period. South Africa has not had a top envoy in the US since Ebrahim Rasool was expelled last year after accusing former president Donald Trump of trying to "project white victimhood as a dog whistle." This appointment comes amidst strained relations between the two nations, which worsened after Trump's return to office last year. Ramaphosa's spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, confirmed Meyer's immediate appointment. Meyer, a white Afrikaner, was considered a reformist within the National Party and later joined the government of national unity in 1994, eventually becoming a member of the ANC. He was also part of a group of 32 prominent South Africans chosen by the president to guide the national dialogue. Trump has previously claimed that Afrikaners are facing genocide and persecution in South Africa, a claim Ramaphosa has called "completely false."