On this day, the offices of The Bantu World, were bombed in 1942. The offices of The Bantu World were bombed by the Ossewabrandwag, a pro-Nazi Afrikaner nationalist group opposing South Africa’s WWII alliance with the Allies.

Overview
The offices of The Bantu World newspaper, a prominent publication catering to black South Africans, were bombed twice during the 1940s by the Ossewabrandwag (OB), a militant, pro-Nazi Afrikaner organization. The attacks were intended to sabotage the newspaper for its support of the South African government’s participation in World War II alongside the Allied forces.

Key Details of the Bombings

The Bantu World was seen by right-wing nationalists as a political threat, especially due to its editorial stance against Nazism and in favor of the Allied war effort.
The Perpetrators: The Ossewabrandwag (OB) was a large, anti-British and anti-war movement that engaged in acts of sabotage within South Africa during the 1940s to protest against the government of Prime Minister Jan Smuts.

Specific Attacks: The newspaper’s offices were heavily damaged twice during the 1940s. One significant incident occurred between November 1944 and February 1945, which caused the paper to suspend operations for a period.

Significance: The Bantu World was a pioneering newspaper in South African media, and these bombings were an attempt by radical Afrikaner nationalists to silence black voices that supported the war against Hitler

Credit: The New African, Wikipedia, SAHO