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Foreign shopkeepers on edge amid South Africa anti-migrant protests
Published On 6 Jul 2026
The safety of African immigrants in South Africa is deteriorating, Nigeria’s foreign minister has warned, after two Nigerians were killed in disputed circumstances during anti-immigrant protests
“There are no signs that the situation is improving,” Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu said on Monday, while announcing more evacuation flights
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The minister demanded South African authorities investigate the deaths of two Nigerians, Musa Yunana Joe and Charles Iroegbu, killed amid “the ongoing xenophobic protests and attacks on migrants”
South African police said Joe’s killing did not appear to be related to the protests, but could not immediately comment on Iroegbu’s death
Nigeria’s foreign ministry says Joe was killed in front of his shop in the northeastern city of eMalahleni by unidentified criminals on June 28 , while Iroegbu was killed by South African police during interrogation in Pretoria on the same day
In a statement on Sunday, the ministry said: “We wish to place the Government of South Africa on notice that if the situation continues to persist, all options remain on the table, some of which will be activated if the uncultured and provocative trend of intolerance… against foreigners is not addressed”
South African foreign ministry spokesman Chrispin Phiri said the government had asked Nigeria’s High Commission to submit “any actionable information to our law enforcement authorities, which will enable a thorough, objective investigation in accordance with the rule of law”
Weeks of anti-immigrant marches
There have been weeks of protests against undocumented migrants, with many South Africans blaming workers from other African countries for taking their jobs and putting a strain on their social services
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South Africa’s government has been accused of not doing enough to crack down on the violence, which has claimed the lives of several foreigners and seen shops owned by immigrants looted and torched
Mozambique said that five of its citizens were killed in xenophobic attacks in late May. South Africa said the number was only two
Ghana and South Africa were embroiled in a diplomatic row last week, following the killing of a Ghanaian national. The South African government said the death of Bashiru Isak was not linked to anti-immigrant protests
Hundreds of Nigerians, among tens of thousands of foreigners, have already left South Africa, once a popular destination for documented and undocumented African immigrants due to its relatively strong economy
Uganda’s High Commission in Pretoria announced on Monday that a fourth group of Ugandan nationals were voluntarily repatriating
South Africa has had a longstanding violent crime problem that precedes the outbreak of xenophobic violence
