Foreign citizens beaten to death in South Africa as anti-immigrant tensions flare

A mob beat a foreign national to death during a march through the streets of Durban, South Africa this week as anti-immigrant tensions continued to flare.

The man, in his 30s or early 40s, was standing on the side of a road when a group of about 50 people approached him and attacked him, according to the police.

Officials were still trying to identify the suspect in the attack and police did not immediately give the man’s nationality or details about what the march was about.

Durban, South Africa’s third largest city of nearly four million people, has become a hotspot for anti-immigrant tensions that have risen this year. South Africa has struggled with months of anti-immigration tensions, and marches demanding government action against migrants in the country illegally have sometimes turned violent.

Nigeria, Mozambique, Malawi and other countries have said that some of their citizens have been killed in xenophobic attacks linked to the anti-immigration protests.

South African authorities have disputed some of these claims and said some deaths were linked to criminal activity and not the protests.

Tens of thousands of migrants have left South Africa in recent months in one of the largest mass exodus in years. Many cite the risk of violence from angry locals, although the government has also said many have been deported for not having the proper documents to be in South Africa.

In June, thousands of migrants, mainly from Malawi, gathered in a park in the city to be returned to their homeland. They claim they are fleeing threats of violence after a protest group demanded undocumented migrants leave South Africa by June 30.

The camp of migrants seeking to leave has grown so quickly that authorities have had to build more temporary accommodation centers to handle the numbers. This month, cars were burned and shops were looted in the Johannesburg township of Soweto after a court ruling made it easier for foreign nationals to claim asylum in South Africa.

The ruling led to many applications being made at government buildings, triggering a reaction from residents.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has condemned violence related to immigration and acknowledged failures in the border control system over the years that have allowed migrants to travel and stay in South Africa without documentation.

As Africa’s largest economy, South Africa attracts migrants from many nations on the continent. This has sometimes caused tension in the communities due to the extremely high unemployment rate in the country and overburdened public services.

South Africa’s official government figures show that there are approximately 2.4 million foreign nationals among the country’s population of 62 million. Protesters say there are many more in South Africa without documentation who have not been counted.