Truth-checking Donald Trump's Oval Workplace confrontation with Cyril Ramaphosa

[ad_1] Peter Mwai, Matt Murphy, Jake Horton & Joshua Cheetham BBC Confirm

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/c03e/live/a0daebe0-36f3-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/c03e/live/a0daebe0-36f3-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/c03e/live/a0daebe0-36f3-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/c03e/live/a0daebe0-36f3-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/c03e/live/a0daebe0-36f3-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/c03e/live/a0daebe0-36f3-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/c03e/live/a0daebe0-36f3-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/c03e/live/a0daebe0-36f3-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.jpg.webp" loading="eager" alt="BBC Donald Trump with Cyril Ramaphosa. The BBC Verify colours and logo are superimposed in the background. " class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/> BBC Donald Trump confronted President Cyril Ramaphosa throughout a tense trade within the White Home on Wednesday, with a sequence of contested claims in regards to the killings of white farmers in South Africa.

The assembly - at first heat and light-hearted - shortly modified tone as Trump requested his workers to play a video largely displaying South African opposition politician Julius Malema chanting a tune calling for violence in opposition to white farmers.

The video additionally included footage displaying rows of crosses, which he claimed was a burial web site for murdered white farmers, and offered Ramaphosa with copies of articles which he mentioned documented widespread brutality in opposition to South Africa's white minority.

Supporters of the Trump administration have lengthy amplified claims of violence in opposition to the white minority, notably Elon Musk and former Fox Information host Tucker Carlson, who ran segments on the supposed genocide in the course of the president's first time period. A few of these claims are demonstrably false.

Did rows of crosses mark graves of white farmers?

The footage performed by Trump within the Oval Workplace confirmed rows of white crosses stretching off into the space alongside a rural street. Trump claimed: "These are burial websites proper right here. Burial websites. Over a thousand of white farmers."

Nonetheless, the crosses don't mark graves. The video is from a protest in opposition to the homicide of white farming couple Glen and Vida Rafferty, who have been ambushed and shot useless on their premises in 2020. The clip was shared on YouTube on 6 September, the day after the protests.

"It isn't a burial web site, nevertheless it was a memorial," Rob Hoatson, one of many organisers of the occasion, informed the BBC. He mentioned the crosses have been erected as a "short-term memorial" to the couple.

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/67f9/live/e91046c0-36f9-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/67f9/live/e91046c0-36f9-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/67f9/live/e91046c0-36f9-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/67f9/live/e91046c0-36f9-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/67f9/live/e91046c0-36f9-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/67f9/live/e91046c0-36f9-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/67f9/live/e91046c0-36f9-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/67f9/live/e91046c0-36f9-11f0-8519-3b5a01ebe413.png.webp" loading="lazy" alt="YouTube Rows of white crosses can be seen on either side of a rural road in South Africa. Tractors and cars drive down the middle of the track, with fields on either side . " class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/> YouTube Trump referred to this clip displaying rows of crosses on a rural street

Mr Hoatson mentioned the crosses have since been taken down.

BBC Confirm has geolocated the footage to an space in KwaZulu-Natal province, close to the city of Newcastle. Google Road View imagery captured in Might 2023 - virtually three years after the footage first appeared on-line - reveals that the crosses have been not standing.

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/5993/live/0a3b55b0-36fa-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.png.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/5993/live/0a3b55b0-36fa-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.png.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/5993/live/0a3b55b0-36fa-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.png.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/5993/live/0a3b55b0-36fa-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.png.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/5993/live/0a3b55b0-36fa-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.png.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/5993/live/0a3b55b0-36fa-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.png.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/5993/live/0a3b55b0-36fa-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.png.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/5993/live/0a3b55b0-36fa-11f0-8947-7d6241f9fce9.png.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Google A Google Street View of the road in rural South Africa. Crosses are no longer seen on either side. " class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/> Google Has there been a genocide of white farmers?

Within the assembly, Trump mentioned: "Lots of people are very involved with regard to South Africa… we've got many individuals that really feel they're being persecuted, and they're coming to the US, so we take from many places if we really feel there's persecution or genocide happening."

He has beforehand made claims about "white genocide" a number of occasions earlier than and seemed to be referring to that.

At a press briefing earlier this month he mentioned: "It is a genocide that is happening" referring to killing of white farmers in South Africa.

The nation has one of many highest homicide charges on the earth. There have been 26,232 murders final yr, in accordance with South African Police Service (SAPS) figures.

Of those, 44 have been killings of individuals throughout the farming neighborhood and of these, eight have been of farmers.

These figures aren't damaged down by race in any public stats launch that we have been in a position to find - however they clearly do not present proof for the claims of "white genocide" made repeatedly by Trump.

In February, a South African choose dismissed the concept of a genocide as "clearly imagined" and "not actual".

The Transvaal Agricultural Union (TAU), which represents farmers, compiles figures which provide an perception into the racial id of the victims. The TAU depends on media reviews, social media posts and reviews from their members.

Their figures for final yr present there have been 23 white individuals killed in farm assaults, and 9 black individuals. To this point this yr TAU has recorded three white individuals and 4 black individuals killed on South African farms.

Did South African officers name for violence in opposition to white farmers?

Through the tense assembly, Trump performed footage from political rallies by which contributors sang "Kill the Boer" - a controversial anti-apartheid tune that critics say requires violence in opposition to white farmers.

South African courts had categorised the tune as hate speech, however current judgements have dominated that it may be legally sung at rallies as judges say it makes a political level and doesn't instantly invoke violence.

Trump mentioned that these main the singing have been "officers" and "folks that have been in workplace".

One of many males main the rally was Julius Malema, who beforehand led the ruling ANC's youth wing. In 2012 he left the get together and has by no means held an official authorities place. He now leads a celebration referred to as the Financial Freedom Fighters (EFF) which gained 9.5% in final yr's election, getting into opposition in opposition to the brand new multi-party coalition.

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/c979/live/340a0080-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/c979/live/340a0080-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/c979/live/340a0080-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/c979/live/340a0080-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/c979/live/340a0080-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/c979/live/340a0080-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/c979/live/340a0080-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/c979/live/340a0080-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Getty Images Julius Malema speaking at a rally. He is wearing a dark coat and a red beret, with his arm raised aloft. He is speaking before a red lectern with the symbol of his party and the letters EFF marked on it. " class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/> Getty Pictures Julius Malema break up from the ANC in 2012, later forming the EFF

Responding to Trump's accusations, Ramaphosa emphasised that the EFF is "a small minority get together" and mentioned that "our authorities coverage is totally in opposition to what he was saying".

One other man within the video who may be heard singing the lyric "shoot the Boer" at a special rally is former President Jacob Zuma, who left workplace in 2018. The video is from 2012 when he was president. The ANC promised to cease singing the tune shortly afterwards.

Zuma subsequently left the ANC and now leads the opposition uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) get together, which gained greater than 14% in final yr's election.

What paperwork did Trump current as proof?

Through the assembly, Trump held up a sequence of articles which he claimed confirmed proof of white farmer killings in South Africa.

There was a picture clearly seen as Trump spoke and mentioned: "Look, this is burial websites everywhere. These are all white farmers which are being buried."

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/4bb8/live/647330c0-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/4bb8/live/647330c0-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/4bb8/live/647330c0-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/4bb8/live/647330c0-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/4bb8/live/647330c0-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/4bb8/live/647330c0-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/4bb8/live/647330c0-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/4bb8/live/647330c0-36fa-11f0-832c-79d04c11fa6e.jpg.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Reuters Donald Trump holding up a piece of paper with an article on it. An image of people in white medical suits can be seen. Trump is wearing a dark suit with a light tie and an American flag pin. " class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/> Reuters However the picture is not from South Africa - it is truly from a report about girls being killed within the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The French information company (AFP) initially identified the picture, and BBC Confirm ran a search and confirmed it as being from a Reuters information company clip filmed within the DR Congo metropolis of Goma in February.

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