By Iqbal Jassat
Following the outrage caused by President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to meet the family of the late Captain Daniel Perez, a South African-born citizen who served illegally in the Israeli Defence Force, EFF MP Carl Niehaus has submitted a series of questions in Parliament, seeking answers and accountability.
Earlier in his critical commentary published by Media Review Network, Niehaus took issue with the South African government’s active role in facilitating the repatriation of Perez’s remains, calling it an act of profound hypocrisy that must be condemned without reservation.
“It is a betrayal of the law, a betrayal of South Africa’s stated solidarity with the Palestinian people, and a betrayal of the very principles the government claims to uphold when it speaks of justice and opposition to genocide.”
Daniel Perez was a South African citizen. He was born in Johannesburg, raised in Glenhazel, and later moved with his family to Israel. He served as a tank commander and platoon commander in the IDF’s 7th Armoured Brigade.
According to Niehaus, Perez’s service in Israel’s military was illegal under South African law.
“There is no ambiguity here. Section 198(b) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa is explicit: the resolve to live in peace and harmony precludes any South African citizen from participating in armed conflict, nationally or internationally, except as provided for in the Constitution or national legislation.
“The Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act and the framework administered by the National Conventional Arms Control Committee require prior authorisation before any citizen may render foreign military assistance. No such authorisation existed. His service was therefore a criminal offence.”
The questions submitted to the National Assembly in Parliament by Niehaus are directed to the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola.
They total twelve in number and are listed hereunder:
Whether the Minister is aware that President Cyril Ramaphosa met the family of the late Captain Daniel Perez, a South African-born citizen who served illegally as a tank and platoon commander in the Israeli Defence Force’s 7th Armoured Brigade, so that the family could thank the President for his personal intervention in facilitating the repatriation of Daniel Perez’s remains from Gaza; if so,
- what is the precise date of the most recent encounter between President Ramaphosa and the Perez family, as reported by the South African Jewish Report;
- what is the precise date of the earlier face-to-face meeting that took place in Washington in May 2025, shortly after President Ramaphosa’s meeting with United States President Donald Trump, during which Mr Perez (the father) flew from Israel to meet the President and discuss the family’s anguish while their son’s body remained in Gaza;
- whether Zev Krengel, acting as National President of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies, worked discreetly behind the scenes to facilitate the initial Washington meeting and/or formed part of, or was present with, President Ramaphosa’s official or unofficial entourage during the President’s visit to Washington for the meeting with President Trump; if so, what are the relevant details;
- whether the Minister is aware of the long-standing and publicly documented concerns and allegations regarding close ties between the South African Jewish Board of Deputies and Mossad, the intelligence service of Zionist Israel;
- whether the Minister acknowledges that the presence or involvement of Mr Zev Krengel in or around President Ramaphosa’s delegation during the critically important Washington visit for the meeting with President Trump constituted a fundamental and serious intelligence and security breach, exposing South Africa at the highest level to potential intelligence compromise and the involvement of a foreign intelligence service (Mossad) in proximity to the South African presidential delegation;
- whether the Minister agrees that this was a serious intelligence and security breach committed with the full knowledge and complicity of President Ramaphosa and of the Minister in the Presidency, Ms Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, who holds political responsibility for the State Security Agency (SSA) and South Africa’s intelligence services;
- whether the Minister agrees that it is extraordinary and unacceptable that the President and the Minister in the Presidency responsible for intelligence could have allowed such a breach to occur;
- whether the Minister regards Daniel Perez’s service in the Israeli Defence Force as illegal under section 198(b) of the Constitution and the Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act, given that no prior authorisation was obtained from the National Conventional Arms Control Committee;
- whether the Minister agrees that President Ramaphosa’s intervention to assist in the return of the remains of a South African citizen who fought for a military force that South Africa has formally accused of genocide before the International Court of Justice, followed by a personal presidential audience granted to the family to express thanks, constitutes a fundamental contradiction of South Africa’s stated foreign policy and of the case South Africa has brought at the ICJ;
- whether the Minister concedes that this sequence of events is deeply hypocritical, undermines the moral and legal authority of South Africa’s ICJ case, raises serious and legitimate concerns that the President’s professed solidarity with the Palestinian people is not genuine, and damages South Africa’s standing in the international community;
- whether the Department of International Relations and Cooperation and the Minister himself were in any way involved in the negotiations or facilitation surrounding the return of Daniel Perez’s remains, especially taking into consideration that the Honourable Minister was also part of President Ramaphosa’s official delegation to Washington for the meeting with President Donald Trump, and furthermore that the Minister in the Presidency responsible for intelligence, Ms Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, was likewise a member of that same delegation;
and
- what concrete steps the Minister intends to take to address this fundamental contradiction, to put the official record straight, to investigate the intelligence and security implications of Mr Krengel’s involvement, and to ensure that South Africa’s conduct is consistent with its legal obligations, its constitutional prohibition on unauthorised foreign military service, and its stated position of solidarity with the Palestinian people against Zionist apartheid Israel?
For context it is crucial to note that Ramaphosa’s controversial meeting with the leader of the World Zionist Organization coincides with extreme repressive measures against Palestinians by the Netanyahu regime.
Not less but more. For instance, the Zionist regime’s far-right national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has called for nightly killings in Gaza of dozens of people who he says are ‘not worthy of life’.
It would be disingenuous to pretend that members of the Perez family serving the regime, whether militarily or otherwise, are not deeply embedded in the interests of the oppressive state.
Daniel Perez did not die as a result of a motor collision or fall off a mountain. His death was due to his deployment in the Zionist-apartheid regime’s military operation designed to perpetually occupy and lay siege to the open prison known as Gaza.
Iqbal Jassat
Executive Member
Media Review Network
Johannesburg
South Africa