5 Mozambicans Killed in South Africa Xenophobic Attacks

(MENAFN) Mozambique confirmed Tuesday that five of its citizens were killed in a wave of xenophobic violence that erupted in the South African coastal city of Mossel Bay, as hundreds of displaced nationals scrambled to flee the country amid escalating anti-immigrant unrest.

A government statement revealed that approximately 800 Mozambicans were caught up in the violence when it broke out on Friday, triggering an immediate exodus of 300 nationals who returned home the following day.

"Regrettably, seven Mozambican citizens died, five of them as a direct consequence of the xenophobic attacks and the other two as a result of a road accident that occurred when they were traveling in a private vehicle on their way back to Mozambique," it said.

The remaining 500 displaced nationals were secured at a protected location within South Africa's Western Cape Province, with repatriation to Mozambique scheduled for Tuesday, the statement added.

The deadly episode forms part of a broader wave of nationwide protests targeting undocumented immigrants — demonstrations that have sent shockwaves through South Africa's migrant communities in recent weeks. Analysts note the latest surge in anti-migrant sentiment coincides with the country's preparations for November's local government elections.

Xenophobic violence has flared repeatedly across South Africa since 2008, with periodic outbreaks leaving trails of displacement, property destruction, and death in their wake.

South African police confirmed Sunday they had opened investigations into the deaths of two men at an informal settlement in Mossel Bay, though authorities stopped short of linking those fatalities to the protests or disclosing the victims' nationalities.

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