Project Thusano was initially intended to focus on the maintenance and repair of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) operational vehicle fleet but has morphed to include expensive supplementary agreements such as training soldiers as medical practitioners and mechanical engineers in Cuba. Photo: Rajesh Jantilal/AFP/Getty Images
The warning from the United States of a possible terror attack in Johannesburg’s wealthy Sandton suburb this weekend has put a chilling spotlight on how plausible such a threat is and whether South African security forces are prepared to deal with it.
President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government has come under huge flak for its handling of the warning publicly released on Wednesday by the US embassy, which advised staff to avoid large public gatherings in the greater Sandton area this weekend.
Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele appeared to dismiss the warning, saying on public broadcaster SABC that a request to the US for evidence of an impending attack had drawn a blank.
But the Democratic Alliance (DA) urged Gungubele to make a public announcement showing the government meant to “treat this matter with the necessary seriousness and agency to allay fears and prevent panic”.
In a brief statement, the government said it had noted what it called “part of the US government’s standard communication to its citizens”.
“We continue to monitor for any threats to our citizens, our nation and our sovereignty.
“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.”
DA MP and head of state security Natasha Mazzone cited the riots in July last year as a “spectacular” failure which had brought into question the capability of South Africa’s intelligence services.
She said the government’s response to the US terror alert was “worryingly indifferent and dismissive”, a sentiment echoed by security experts who said an attack was plausible.
In its alert, the US government said it had received “information that terrorists may be planning to conduct an attack targeting large gatherings of people” in Sandton, but added that it had no further information “regarding the timing, method or target of the potential attack”.
A News24 report said potential targets for an attack might be a gay pride event, a show staged by Jewish comedian Nik Rabinowitz or peace talks between warring parties from the Tigray region of Ethiopia. It said US authorities had identified seven individuals believed to be part of a cell aligned to the Islamic State (IS).
The report added South African police had set in motion their own surveillance, and had traced suspects, when the pre-emptive travel advisory was released, scuppering their investigation.
Attempts to speak to Gay Pride march organiser Kaye Ally were unsuccessful. The Mail & Guardian also sent questions to a police spokesperson who did not respond.
Jasmine Opperman, an independent southern African terrorism expert who focuses on extremism, said she had “serious reservations” about the ability of South African security services to adequately respond to a terror threat.
“Look at their response to organised crime. It doesn’t inspire confidence. I have a problem with the government’s response to the alert. They immediately played it down and then they say they will guarantee our safety. You get a sense that our intelligence services were caught off-guard or their relations with US security forces aren’t as fluid as one would like,” Opperman said.
“Our government should respond more authoritatively. When there is no trust in our security services, and the US issues a warning like this, who do you think the public will believe?
“While the reports might be vague and unsubstantiated, the plausibility of a terror attack is not in question. Our vulnerability to terrorism is increasing. You see it with reports around Isis in Mozambique and our forces fighting there. You see it with Isis links into SA and terror financing. This creates latent anticipation.”
Security expert Ryan Cummings, who is the director at Signal Risk and Sherpa and a senior associate at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said the US and South Africa were obligated to take any threat seriously.
“The burning question is how credible the threat is. It’s difficult to know how the US garnered the information it has but the one thing that stands out about this warning is the level of detail. It mentions Sandton and a specific date,” he said.
“The US is aware of the political sensitivities about issuing this warning. They obviously believe the information must be actioned. This speaks to the seriousness with which they regard it.”
Cummings said the warning wasn’t necessarily an indictment of South African intelligence services or perceptions around their competence, noting: “The US has issued these threats in countries that are their strongest allies, like France, for example. If there is a threat they feel obligated to put it out in the public domain to protect their citizens.”
The threat of terror activities in SA was real, Cummings added, recalling how IS had publicly warned it would act against South Africa for sending troops to fight its allies in northern Mozambique. About 600 members of the South African National Defence Force have been in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province since October last year and have destroyed several extremist camps as part of the 16-nation Southern African Development Community effort.
Durban businessman Farhad Hoomer, who was sanctioned by the US in March after being accused of leading an “Isis cell”, told the M&G he had been contacted by friends after the Sandton terror alert news broke.
“I’m in Morocco. I’m not really sure what is happening. The Americans are full of shit. They do things and blame it on Muslims. Let’s see what they are planning,” he said.
“I have been in Russia on business for two months. Unfortunately, I’m on the US hit list and I don’t know what I can really do about that.
“Now I’m with family in Morocco. The FBI … came here to Morocco to my wife’s place before I got here. They didn’t identify themselves as FBI but they questioned my wife and terrorised her and my two daughters. One week before this they went to my wife’s family in Tunisia, terrorising them and asking questions about me. I was really angry about that.”
In March, the US Treasury put out an advisory saying it had designated four IS financial facilitators based in South Africa, including Hoomer. It said IS members and associates in South Africa were “playing an increasingly central role” in facilitating the transfer of funds from the top of the IS hierarchy to branches across Africa.
The US said between 2017 and 2018, Hoomer helped organise and begin the operations of a Durban IS cell. It identified him as the cell leader and alleged he raised funds through “kidnap-for-ransom operations and extortion of major businesses” — accusations he has denied.
Hoomer, who has faced failed terror charges in court in Durban, has denied being a terrorist but did go on record saying he was willing to take up arms to achieve his goal of the establishment of an Islamic caliphate.
The Global Institute for Trans-national Organised Crime earlier this year released a report noting several instances over the past two decades where South Africa had been used by terrorists operating internationally: as a base to plan attacks, a conduit for financing and a hiding place.
The report said that some analysts had argued that South Africa’s “extensive issues with gangsterism, corruption and entrenched organised crime have created a febrile situation that terror networks can exploit to their advantage”.
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