The Mozambican government indicated that five of its nationals had been killed in recent days during xenophobic violence in South Africa, the first foreign government to report deaths linked to the wave of anti-migrant protests and violent actions.

South African police, for their part, reported two deaths on Tuesday without linking it to anti-migrant tensions.

Around 800 Mozambicans were targeted in violence that broke out Friday in the port city of Mossel Bay (south), according to a statement released Monday evening, which specifies that "seven Mozambicans died, including five as a direct result of the xenophobic attacks and two as a result of a road accident while they were returning to Mozambique by car".

"It is not true that five people were killed," said Novela Potelwa, spokesperson for the police in the Western Cape province (southern Mozambique). "Two Mozambicans lost their lives in the Asla Park slum on the outskirts of the city on Friday evening, one aged 27 and the other 43," she clarified.

As the continent's most industrialized economy, South Africa has long attracted numerous African workers, both documented and undocumented, despite very high unemployment and poverty. According to analysts, there is strong resentment towards employed African immigrants who are often scapegoated.

For several months, xenophobic demonstrations have taken place in several regions of the country, with parties fueling anti-immigrant rhetoric, seen as an effective campaign argument to win seats in the local elections in early November.

The country has approximately three million legal immigrants (5.1% of the population), according to official statistics. Nearly two-thirds come from southern African countries experiencing economic crises (Zimbabwe, Malawi, etc.) or from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Some also come from West Africa and last week Ghana chartered a first repatriation flight for some 300 of its nationals evacuated from South Africa because of the tensions.

The latest violence prompted 300 Mozambicans to return home on their own on Saturday, according to Maputo authorities. "The remaining 500 or so have since found refuge in a safe location in the Western Cape province, and their repatriation has already begun."

South African police announced on Sunday that they were investigating the deaths of two men in a slum in Mossel Bay, a city located approximately 400 kilometers east of Cape Town, where xenophobic violence had been reported. However, South African police had not yet established a link between the violence and the deaths, nor clarified the nationalities of the two victims.

Mayor Dirk Kotze, on the other hand, expressed "his deep concern and dismay at the xenophobic violence that has led to people being killed, houses being burned down and families being displaced."

- Ultimatum -

The anti-immigrant movement March and March, whose supporters wear T-shirts in the South African colors, has issued an ultimatum demanding the deportation of undocumented migrants by June 30. This initiative has no official support and has been criticized by the authorities.

The Mozambican government stressed that the situation was volatile and risked worsening as June 30th approached. Maputo is working to support its citizens still in South Africa.

South Africa has experienced several waves of xenophobic violence over the past two decades.

In 2008, 62 people, including 21 South Africans, were killed in anti-migrant riots, and thousands were displaced. Further outbreaks of violence followed in 2015 and 2016. In 2019, armed groups targeted foreign-owned businesses around Johannesburg, killing at least 12 people, including 10 South Africans.