A group of 49 white South Africans boarded a flight from Johannesburg, marking their first arrivals under President Donald Trump’s controversial refugee program. Their destination: the United States, where they are expected to be met with both support and criticism.

This initiative follows Trump’s declaration earlier this year that white farmers in South Africa are victims of racial discrimination—a claim that has sparked significant backlash from the South African government, which argues it is unfounded.

The South African Foreign Ministry has called the resettlement plan politically motivated and aimed at undermining the country’s democracy. Elon Musk, an advisor to Trump, fueled the fire by claiming there is a genocide of white people occurring in South Africa—a statement many experts have discredited.

The deteriorating relations between the two nations have been highlighted by recent expulsions of ambassadors and accusations of race-baiting.

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