Nigeria 'summons' South African envoy over xenophobic attacks

Nigeria’s foreign affairs minister has summoned the South African envoy after Nigerian citizens came under violent xenophobic attacks in Pretoria.

The ministry further condemned the attacks and cautioned that this will jitter unnecessary tension between the two countries.

Relations have been strained by accusations of South African xenophobia, with Nigerians alleging that Pretoria subjects them to harsh visa restrictions.

In the streets of Abuja, Nigerians expressed their anger over the attacks.

“They have their citizens here, right? They are not attacking them, nothing is happening to them, why are they attacking us over there? Why are they attacking us over there? Then come to the part of our government I think before this very time government ought to have taken a stand over that thing. They ought to have intervened, it shouldn’t have come this far,” said Abuja resident, Oladapo John.

On the other hand, the South African government has dismissed xenophobic claims and that there was no need for African Union intervention as demanded by Nigeria. The South African government has maintained that its citizens were not xenophobic and the attacks were in response to rampant drugs and prostitution common in the vandalized centres.