Umamah Bakharia | ub@radioislam.co.za

2 min read
27 October 2022 | 09:15 am CAT

The South African government has urged its citizens not to worry after the US Government said it received information on a possible terrorist attack on the Sandton district of Johannesburg.

The US Embassy in Pretoria says in a statement that they have no additional information regarding the timing, method or target of the potential attack on Saturday, 29 October 2022.

In response to the numerous inquiries the U.S. Mission to South Africa has received, kindly note the safety alert issued earlier today.https://t.co/IiMEIMdM6a

— US Embassy SA (@USEmbassySA) October 26, 2022

However, speaking to the SABC Minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele, the alarm was seemingly not backed up by any evidence.

In a statement, the presidency says, “Threats are assessed continuously and are acted upon to ensure the safety of all. Should the need arise, the South African government will be the first to inform the public about any imminent threat.”

It is the responsibility of the South African security forces to ensure that all people within our country feel safe.

Law enforcement agencies continue to monitor for any threats to our citizens, our nation and our sovereignty.

— Presidency | South Africa ???????? (@PresidencyZA) October 26, 2022

The alert comes after the US government issued a similar terrorist attack warning in Nigeria’s capital Abuja over the weekend.

The United States says it is working with its African partners, including South Africa, to dismantle ISIS financial support networks on the continent.

US Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, says: “In the African context, the presence of Al Qaeda and ISIS-linked individuals and groups warrants close monitoring and action. These groups threaten Somalia, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, the Sahel and Sinai regions and through ISIS financial facilitation networks in countries including South Africa. Money continues to be the lifeblood of terrorists. We must bolster our efforts to go after financiers and financial facilitators of terrorists and terrorist organizations and we must stymie vital resource streams that take advantage of weak regulatory oversight.”

In March, the US Treasury decided to sanction four ISIS and ISIS-Mozambique financial facilitators in South Africa.