Trump administration condemns detention of US officials in South Africa

The United States on Thursday condemned South Africa's recent detention of U.S. officials who it said were providing support to the Afrikaner minority group.

Two U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services refugee officers were briefly detained and then released during the operation on Tuesday, a USCIS official and a person familiar with the matter told Reuters.

South Africa's home affairs ministry said no U.S. officials were arrested.

On Wednesday, South African authorities said they arrested and would deport seven Kenyan nationals illegally working on processing refugee applications for the U.S. government.

"The U.S. condemns in the strongest terms the South African government’s recent detention of U.S. officials performing their duties to provide humanitarian support to Afrikaners," the State Department said in a statement, referring to South Africa's Dutch-descended minority group.

President Donald Trump's administration aims to bring thousands of white South Africans to the United States on the basis of claims that they are victims of racial persecution, which South Africa's government denies.

The State Department said U.S. officials' passport information was also publicly released in what it called "an unacceptable form of harassment."

"We call on the Government of South Africa to take immediate action to bring this situation under control and hold those responsible accountable," the State Department said.

A spokesperson for South Africa's foreign affairs ministry said he was not aware that U.S. officials' passport information had been publicly released.

Bhargav Acharya in Toronto and Alexander Winning in Johannesburg/Reuters