Ministry cautions against ‘malicious’ social media posts; reports of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s ill health and unverified claims about Xi Jinping circulate onlineThe Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday dismissed reports claiming that several world leaders had fallen ill after attending the BRICS Summit in New Delhi, terming the reports “fake” and cautioning against what it called “malicious” social media posts.In a post on X, the MEA’s fact-checking unit said: “Fake Alert!!! 🚨🚨🚨 We caution against such malicious posts on social media platforms!”Fake Alert!!! 🚨🚨🚨We caution against such malicious posts on social media platforms! pic.twitter.com/NRu6Dfk7Yj— MEA FactCheck (@MEAFactCheck) September 17, 2026Ramaphosa’s ill health fuels speculationThe ministry’s clarification came after the office of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said he had withdrawn from public engagements after returning from the BRICS Summit in India.In a statement, the Presidency said the 73-year-old President had been advised by doctors to rest and recover due to ill health.PRESIDENT RAMAPHOSA BOOKED OFF FROM PUBLIC ENGAGEMENTSThe Presidency wishes to advise that, due to ill health, President @CyrilRamaphosa is currently booked off from public engagements.President Ramaphosa, who returned from the BRICS Summit in India on Monday, has been…— The Presidency 🇿🇦 (@PresidencyZA) September 16, 2026“The Presidency wishes to advise that, due to ill health, President Cyril Ramaphosa is currently booked off from public engagements,” it said.Ramaphosa returned from the summit on Monday and had since been resting on medical advice, the statement added.“Where possible, the President has asked the respective Ministers to represent him at scheduled public engagements,” it said.His absence came as South African Deputy President Paul Mashatile was also recovering from a minor medical procedure, leaving both the country’s top leaders away from public engagements.“On the advice of my doctors, I will continue resting until advised otherwise while work and delegated responsibilities continue to be underway in the capable team in my office with other stakeholders in government, business and other sectors,” Mashatile said.Meanwhile, unverified reports claimed that Chinese President Xi Jinping had left the BRICS Summit early for medical reasons and returned to China on a special plane. These claims have not been independently verified.Xi attended the BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12 and participated in a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the event.BRICS Summit in New DelhiIndia hosted the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi from September 12 to 13 under the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”.The summit brought together leaders of the expanded 11-member grouping to discuss global governance, economic cooperation and geopolitical challenges.The New Delhi Declaration reaffirmed the grouping’s commitment to resolving international disputes through dialogue, consultation and diplomacy.On trade tensions and unilateral measures, the leaders said: “We oppose unilateral, punitive, discriminatory and protectionist measures that are not in line with international law.”The declaration also expressed concern over the risks posed by nuclear weapons and conflict and called for greater multilateral cooperation on global issues.