Following his alleged participation in a failed coup in Benin in December 2025, the prominent activist Kemi Seba has been taken into custody in South Africa. The details surrounding his capture have sent shockwaves through the region, particularly regarding his choice of companions. Seba, who has built a career on the rhetoric of Black liberation, was apprehended in the company of a white supremacist whose ideology is diametrically opposed to the interests of Black communities.

An unexpected alliance in Pretoria

The events of Wednesday, April 15, have revealed a bizarre shift in the political landscape of southern Africa. South African authorities arrested Seba, a leading figure in radical pan-Africanist circles, alongside François van der Merwe. The 26-year-old Van der Merwe leads the “Bittereinders” (Those Who Fight to the End), a fringe group established in 2021 that claims to protect the Afrikaner minority from what they describe as “anti-white discrimination.”

Currently monitored by the State Security Agency (SSA), this movement is reported to have hundreds of armed followers. The sight of a decolonial activist and an Afrikaner nationalist being detained together has raised serious questions about their shared objectives.

The Russian connection: The Society of the Double-Headed Eagle

Investigation into the two men reveals a common link: the Society of the Double-Headed Eagle. This organization, also known as the Tsargrad network, is steered by Konstantin Malofeev, an ultra-conservative Russian oligarch. Malofeev has been under international sanctions since 2014 for his financial support of Russian separatists in Ukraine and has been the target of U.S. federal investigations for evading those sanctions.

François van der Merwe’s ties to this network are well-documented; he visited Moscow in September at Malofeev’s personal invitation. Since that trip, Russian state-controlled media has frequently featured the young Afrikaner. Despite having a criminal record—including arrests in late 2023 and early 2024 for brawling and public order offenses—Kremlin-linked outlets have attempted to frame him as a “political prisoner,” even staging support events near the Kremlin.

From decolonial fighter to geopolitical pawn

In this complex web of international influence, Kemi Seba appears to have shifted his role. The activist, whose public image is defined by his opposition to “Western supremacism,” is now inextricably linked to a group dedicated to maintaining racial hierarchies reminiscent of the Apartheid era.

By partnering with the Bittereinders, Seba has moved beyond political provocation. He is now aligned with a faction that views the Black majority in South Africa as a direct threat. This partnership carries heavy legal weight: the Bittereinders are officially designated as a terrorist organization within South Africa. Consequently, Seba may face charges related to assisting terrorist activities, suggesting that his legal troubles are far more severe than initially reported.

By Boureima Amadou — Reporter