Nigeria says two nationals killed in anti-migrant violence in South Africa

Nigeria said on Sunday that two of its nationals were killed in South Africa last month amid xenophobic violence targeting people from elsewhere on the continent.

In a statement, it added that they died on 28 June in the build up to an end-of-month unofficial deadline by anti-illegal immigrant groups for foreigners to leave the country.

Abuja said one of the men was allegedly killed by police officers in Pretoria and the other by unidentified attackers in Mpumalanga province.

There has been no comment yet from the South African police.

Anti-illegal immigrant protesters blame foreigners for high levels of unemployment, crime, and pressure on public services.

Violence at recent demonstrations and attacks on Africans has prompted countries including Nigeria, Ghana, and Zimbabwe to repatriate thousands of their citizens.

In a statement on X on Sunday, Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the killing of the men and warned it would take unspecified measures if such attacks continue.

It urged South Africa to swiftly investigate their deaths and other pending cases involving the alleged extra-judicial killing of Nigerians.