WASHINGTON — The first group of white South Africans who the Trump administration is classifying as refugees are expected to arrive in the United States on Monday.
President Donald Trump suspended refugee admissions from most other nations when he took office. But in a February executive order, Trump said the U.S. would establish a plan to resettle “Afrikaners” and their families as refugees in the United States.
Afrikaners are mainly of Dutch descent. The Trump administration has accused the South African “government-sponsored race-based discrimination” and pledged to cut off all aid and assistance.
According to the New York Times, a group of 54 Afrikaners were due to depart from Johannesburg on Sunday. The Washington Post reported that a group of 60 Afrikaners would be arriving on a State Department plane on Monday to an airport just outside of Washington.
The State Department declined in an email to confirm the reports or say how many South Africans would be coming and when they would arrive.
A spokesperson said in response to a request for comment that the U.S. Embassy in Pretoria, South Africa had been conducting interviews and processing applications of individuals who have expressed in moving to the United States. The State Department said in its statement that it is prioritizing Afrikaners in South Africa who it views as victims of unjust racial discrimination.