Following his failed attempt at a coup in Benin during December 2025, the activist Kemi Seba has been taken into custody in South Africa. The details surrounding his capture are coming to light, revealing a startling contradiction: the pan-Africanist leader was apprehended alongside a white supremacist whose ideologies are diametrically opposed to the Black community.
The unexpected duo: Seba and the Bittereinders
On Wednesday, April 15, South African authorities arrested Seba, known for his radical decolonial stance, alongside 26-year-old François van der Merwe. 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 “anti-white discrimination.” This movement, which boasts hundreds of armed followers, is currently under the watchful eye of the State Security Agency (SSA).
A connection forged in Moscow
The bridge between these two unlikely allies is the Society of the Double-Headed Eagle, also referred to as the Tsargrad network. This organization is controlled by Konstantin Malofeev, an ultra-conservative Russian oligarch. Malofeev has faced international sanctions since 2014 for his financial support of Russian separatists and is currently under investigation by U.S. prosecutors for sanction violations.
Van der Merwe’s ties to Russia strengthened after a September trip to Moscow at Malofeev’s request. Following this, Russian state media began portraying the young Afrikaner as a victim of political persecution, despite his history of arrests for brawling and public disorder. Pro-Kremlin rallies have even been held in his honor near the heart of Moscow.
From activist to geopolitical pawn
In this complex web of influence, Kemi Seba appears to have transitioned from a leader to a mere instrument. While he built his reputation on resisting “Western supremacism,” he is now inextricably linked to a movement that seeks to uphold racial hierarchies reminiscent of the Apartheid era.
By partnering with the Bittereinders, Seba is aligning himself with an organization that views South Africa’s Black majority as a threat. Because the Bittereinders are designated as a terrorist group in South Africa, Seba’s alleged cooperation with them could lead to severe legal repercussions far beyond initial media reports.