Naledi Pandor, former South African foreign minister, has repeatedly professed her support for ‘jihad’ and ‘armed struggle’
The Trump administration on Thursday revoked the visa of Naledi Pandor, the South African official who spearheaded a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), spoke by phone with former Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh shortly after Oct. 7, 2023, and repeatedly offered support for terrorism, a senior State Department official exclusively confirmed to the Washington Free Beacon.
“Pandor’s visa has been revoked,” the official said. “Pandor has openly supported terrorism and endorsed violent jihads. Under the Trump administration, the U.S. government will no longer tolerate dangerous foreigners traveling into our country to spread their violent policies.”
Pandor, who served as South African foreign minister from 2019 to 2024, just concluded a trip to the United States for the Milwaukee premiere of Muslim Network Television. A senior State Department official told the Free Beacon ahead of Pandor’s visit that the department was “aware of this individual’s pro-terrorism background” and that the matter was “under review.”
The former diplomat, a convert to Islam, has professed her support for terrorism on numerous occasions. She said in September that Muslims “are permitted to engage in jihad when necessary” and told an audience in October that “armed struggle may become a necessity if there is no movement toward fundamental change.”
During her time in South African government, Pandor led the country’s lawfare campaign against Israel, ultimately filing a formal accusation of genocide against the Jewish state in December 2023. Just 10 days after Hamas attacked Israel, Pandor spoke on the phone with Haniyeh and, according to Hamas, offered her congratulations for the “Al-Aqsa Flood,” the terror group’s name for its October 7 operation. While Pandor initially claimed the conversation had to do with humanitarian aid, her office eventually admitted that she called to reiterate “South Africa’s solidarity and support” for Palestinians.
The State Department’s decision to revoke Pandor’s visa is the Trump administration’s latest bid to prevent foreigners who support terrorism from entering the United States. A State Department official said in August that the administration has revoked the visas of 200 to 300 students who have expressed “support for terrorism” since it began doing so in March, including those of Columbia University’s Mahmoud Khalil and Cornell University’s Momodou Taal.
Khalil, who led pro-Hamas protests at Columbia and according to an immigration judge “willfully misrepresented” his pro-terror activism and work for the Hamas-tied U.N. Relief and Works Agency, has appealed the decision. Taal—who claimed to take his “cue from the armed resistance in Palestine”—left the United States earlier this year.
The Trump administration in June canceled the visas of British rap duo Bob Vylan after a performance in which the band called for the murder of Israeli soldiers and an end to Israel.
As the Free Beacon reported on Thursday, Sen. Ted Budd (R., N.C.) introduced a bill to prevent supporters of a list of terror groups from entering the United States in a move to codify the Trump administration’s practice of preventing those who endorse terrorism from coming into the United States. If signed into law, the bill will ensure the policy persists after President Donald Trump leaves office.
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