South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Thursday slammed the United States government for failing to discuss a terror alert issued by the American Embassy with local authorities, reported The Bloomberg.
Ramaphosa’s statement comes after the US embassy warned on Wednesday that one of South Africa’s Sandton may be the target of an attack this weekend, and advised its staff to refrain from crowded places and other large public gatherings.
Notably, Sandton, the richest square mile on the African continent, is home to a collection of high-end shops and lofty office blocks and banks.
The US embassy warning said the attack could occur there on Saturday. The embassy did not give any further information on the timing, method, or target of the potential weekend attack, but advised its staff members to avoid crowds of people and other large public gatherings in the greater Sandton area during the October29-30 weekend. The warning was echoed by the embassies of the United Kingdom, France, Canada and Australia.
“It was quite unfortunate that the US government issued that type of warning without having had a deep-dive type of discussion with us,” Ramaphosa said Thursday during a joint press conference with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who is visiting the country.
He said it was unfortunate that another government was issuing such a threat as to send panic among South African people. He said the country’s authorities and security forces are working to verify the threat. He assured the South African government will issue an alert if the authorities find any real threat.
The biggest gathering planned this weekend in Sandton is a Johannesburg Pride event to celebrate LGBTQ+ rights. The parade organizers plan to proceed with the gathering.
In related news, on Sunday, the US also warned its citizens in Nigeria about possible terror attacks in parts of the country.
