Bombay Durpun - Mozambique says five citizens killed in S.Africa 'xenophobic attacks'

Protests against undocumented foreign nationals have been mounting in recent weeks, leading Ghana to evacuate around 300 of its citizens last week, with Nigeria also announcing repatriations.

Violence erupted in the southern coastal town of Mossel Bay on Friday after a small protest against illegal migrants accused of taking jobs from locals, officials and reports said.

Dozens of shacks were torched, some while people were still in them, local media reported.

"Regrettably, seven Mozambican citizens have died, five of them as a direct consequence of the xenophobic attacks and the other two as a result of a road accident when they were travelling in a private vehicle on their way back to Mozambique," the Mozambique government media office said late Monday.

They are the first killings allegedly linked to a new wave of anti-migrant protests sweeping the country.

The South African police only confirmed that two Mozambicans, aged 27 and 43, had died after being assaulted following the march.

The circumstances were being investigated, they said, refusing to confirm a link with xenophobic sentiment.

The body of an 18-year-old South African was found with stab wounds in the same area on Sunday, police said, adding he had been involved in an attempted robbery.

Five people had been arrested since the violence broke out, three of them on charges related to public violence and the possession of stolen property, they said.

- 'We are not safe' -

The national broadcaster SABC said tensions in Mossel Bay erupted over allegations that undocumented migrants were being employed by construction companies.

Around 55 shacks were torched, authorities said.

"We were still inside when people started burning down our house," Mozambican national Dolinda Mabunda was quoted as saying by the Mossel Bay Advertiser.

"I just took what I could and I ran," she said.

"I will go back (home) because we are not safe," a migrant named Silvino Chauque told the national broadcaster SABC, saying he had lost all his possessions in the unrest.

The Mozambique government said 300 Mozambican nationals had returned home on Saturday.

"The remaining just over 500 have since been sheltered in a safe location in the Western Cape Province, and as of... 1 June, the process of their repatriation to Mozambique is already underway," it said.

Mossel Bay mayor, Dirk Kotze, at the weekend voiced "deep concern and dismay at the current xenophobic attacks where people have been murdered, houses burned and families displaced".

- June 30 'order' -

After one citizen-led organisation demanded that undocumented foreign nationals exit South Africa by June 30, there have been reports of vigilante groups checking the documentation of foreign nationals and forcing small businesses run by non-South Africans to close.

The action has no official backing and has been criticised by the authorities.

Last month several hundred foreign nationals from countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Somalia sought protection in the eastern port city of Durban, saying locals were going door-to-door to tell them to leave by the end of the month.

Several countries including Kenya, Malawi, Lesotho and Zimbabwe have meanwhile urged their citizens in South Africa to exercise caution.

South Africa has experienced repeated waves of xenophobic violence over the past decades. The latest spike comes as political parties seek support ahead of local government elections in November.

In 2008, 62 people -- including 21 South Africans -- were killed in anti-immigrant riots that also displaced thousands. Further outbreaks followed in 2015 and 2016.

N.Sabharwal--BD