Posts falsely claim UK issued warrant for South African opposition leader

The United Kingdom has twice refused visas to radical leftist South African politician Julius Malema in 2025. In June, social media posts styled as articles claimed that Britain had issued an arrest warrant for the opposition leader, and that President Cyril Ramaphosa responded to this at a press conference attended by EU delegates. This is false; there was no press conference about any arrest warrant and both the British High Commission and South Africa’s foreign ministry have denied these claims.

“Why is this news not headline news?” reads a Facebook post published on June 6, 2025, in Afrikaans, adding a headline: “President Ramaphosa Breaks Silence on UK Arrest Warrant for Julius Malema: Unbelievable.”

Malema is known for his controversial stances, including singing “Kill the Boer”, a song originally chanted during apartheid in protest against the brutal system of white-minority rule (archived here).

The post, which features the date "June 5, 2025", is styled as a news article, and claims that “Ramaphosa has publicly addressed — for the first time — the international arrest warrant issued for Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema by the United Kingdom,” reads the opening paragraph.

According to the post, Ramaphosa was “speaking at the Union Buildings in Pretoria during a joint press conference with visiting EU dignitaries,” where he said that his office had been “formally briefed by the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) and the South African Police Service (SAPS) regarding the UK’s legal request”.

The post claims that Malema’s purported warrant is in connection with "an alleged money laundering and organised financial crime investigation" involving a British-based shell company.

Ramaphosa is also quoted as purportedly saying: “South Africa has treaties and cooperative frameworks with the United Kingdom. If a formal extradition request is received, it will be reviewed through the proper judicial channels.”

The post includes a link to a YouTube video with audio narrating the same text -- along with other claims, including that large-scale protests are planned in the country’s main cities in support of Malema.

The footage consists of stock images of Ramaphosa and one of Malema in a courtroom dock.

Numerous versions of the claim have been replicated across multiple platforms, including TikTok and X.

No press conference

The YouTube channel that posted the video has a disclaimer that reads: "This channel is all about SATIRE and PARODY — meaning nothing here is meant to be taken seriously.”

There have been no reports about any arrest warrant issued by the UK for Malema.

On July 10, 2025, the British High Commission in South Africa told AFP Fact Check it “is not aware of any arrest warrants of pending legal requests related to Julius Malema.”

South Africa’s foreign ministry spokesman, Chrispin Phiri, called the Facebook post “fake” in a WhatsApp message on June 17, 2025, adding that there was “no such thing”.

The Delegation of the European Union to South Africa also refuted claims of a meeting with Ramaphosa on June 5, 2025.

“Please note that the Delegation of the European Union did not have a meeting at the Union Buildings on 5 June,” a spokesperson wrote in an email to AFP Fact Check on June 23, 2025.

Social media posts published on the same day as the false post show the EU Ambassador to South Africa, Sandra Kramer, meeting with provincial agricultural minister Vuyiswa Ramokgopa at the EU's Pretoria office (archived here).

South Africa’s presidency typically announces Ramaphosa’s schedule through advisories or social media, but there were no reports or public appearances for the head of state on that date (archived here).

UK visa denial

Malema is entangled with the UK over visa issues, which have made international headlines (archived here).

The UK denied Malema a visa on two separate occasions, the first when he was invited to lecture at Cambridge University (archived here).

“The British authorities have denied me a visa to London for the Cambridge Conference this weekend, providing no substantial justification,” read Malema’s X post on May 7, 2025 (archived here).

The BBC reported that British High Commissioner to South Africa Antony Phillipson apologised at the time, citing a delay due to bank holidays.

However, Malema’s visa was denied again in June (archived here). According to an X post by the Economic Freedom Fighters, the UK letter said his presence “would not be conducive to the public good” due to his vocal support for the Palestinian armed group Hamas and continued calls for “the slaughter of white people”.

A British official confirmed the content of the report to AFP on condition of anonymity but would not give details (archived here).

The only public references to a Malema arrest warrant date back to 2012, when South African police issued an arrest warrant for the politician after media reports linked him to fraud and corruption charges related to a family trust (archived here).

The contract was for the construction of roads in Malema's home province, Limpopo, when he was still the head of the African National Congress’s youth wing and was accused of "improperly" receiving money for the contract.

However, in 2015, a South African judge threw out the case (archived here).

By then, following his expulsion from the ANC, Malema had formed the radical-left Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) political party.