Zim GBC News Network
PARIS – South Africa’s ambassador to France, Nkosinathi Emmanuel “Nathi” Mthethwa, was found dead on Tuesday at the foot of the Hyatt Regency hotel in Paris, in what French authorities are investigating as an apparent fall from the building.
The Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed the discovery, revealing that the ambassador had been reported missing by his wife on Monday evening after she received a concerning text message from him. According to the prosecutor’s statement, Mthethwa had booked a room on the 22nd floor of the high-rise hotel in western Paris, and investigators found that “a secured window had been forced open.”
While the investigation is ongoing, French media outlets including Le Parisien reported that Mthethwa was believed to have died by suicide, though authorities have not officially confirmed this.
The South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation confirmed the ambassador’s death in a statement, describing Mthethwa as “a distinguished servant of the nation” and calling his passing “a national loss.”
“Ambassador Mthethwa was a distinguished servant of the nation, whose career was marked by dedicated service in critical ministerial portfolios,” the department stated, adding that they were awaiting the outcome of the French investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.
According to the embassy’s website, Mthethwa served as South Africa’s Minister of Arts and Culture from 2014 to 2019, and later as Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture from 2019 to 2023 before his diplomatic posting to France.
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