Cars torched and shops looted as anti-migrant violence erupts in South Africa

What the report says

Anti-immigration protests turned violent in South Africa on Thursday, with police saying at least 24 vehicles were set on fire and foreign-owned shops were looted in Soweto, outside Johannesburg, and in Durban on the east coast. The unrest broke out in two major cities and prompted police to deploy reinforcements and use rubber bullets to disperse crowds.

According to BBC Africa, the Durban demonstration escalated after allegations that a foreign national had assaulted one of the protesters. Police said three foreign nationals were arrested in connection with that alleged assault. In Durban, protesters gathered outside a government refugee reception centre and demanded that it stop taking asylum applications. In Soweto, residents also targeted small convenience stores run by foreign nationals, known locally as spaza shops.

The violence comes amid heightened debate over migration and asylum after South Africa’s Constitutional Court ruled in July that certain barriers to asylum applications should be removed. That decision has angered anti-immigration campaigners, who fear it could encourage undocumented migration. Government officials have said the ruling does not automatically grant legal status, and that applications will still be assessed individually.

The episode fits a wider pattern: South Africa has faced repeated xenophobic attacks over many years, often aimed at migrants from neighboring countries. In a broader context, researchers have said claims that migrants are responsible for crime, job losses or pressure on services are not supported by evidence, while poverty and unemployment remain major national pressures.