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| South Africa Riots Kill Five and Spur Cries of Xenophobia | |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Rioters looted shops and set fire to cars and buildings in the latest outbreak of violence against African immigrants in and around Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest city. The police said five people were killed and at least 189 arrested. | Rioters looted shops and set fire to cars and buildings in the latest outbreak of violence against African immigrants in and around Johannesburg, South Africa’s largest city. The police said five people were killed and at least 189 arrested. |
| President Cyril Ramaphosa condemned the violence on Tuesday, calling attacks on foreigners “totally unacceptable” and adding that xenophobia was “something that is completely against the ethos that we as South Africans espouse.” | President Cyril Ramaphosa condemned the violence on Tuesday, calling attacks on foreigners “totally unacceptable” and adding that xenophobia was “something that is completely against the ethos that we as South Africans espouse.” |
| The riots, he warned, could prompt counterattacks against South Africans in other nations. | The riots, he warned, could prompt counterattacks against South Africans in other nations. |
| The violence on Monday night appeared to target shops owned by foreigners, said the mayor of Johannesburg, Herman Mashaba, and follow a spate of similar riots this year that have been part of a larger trend of hostility toward outsiders. | The violence on Monday night appeared to target shops owned by foreigners, said the mayor of Johannesburg, Herman Mashaba, and follow a spate of similar riots this year that have been part of a larger trend of hostility toward outsiders. |
| There are fewer than four million migrants in South Africa, a nation of more than 50 million. But attacks on foreign-owned shops have become regular occurrences that many have attributed to frustration with the country’s high unemployment rate, which sits at about 28 percent. | There are fewer than four million migrants in South Africa, a nation of more than 50 million. But attacks on foreign-owned shops have become regular occurrences that many have attributed to frustration with the country’s high unemployment rate, which sits at about 28 percent. |
| The most recent surge in violence, which began on Sunday, spurred anger both in and outside of South Africa, though some officials sought to portray it as the work of criminals rather than people angered by perceived outsiders. The police minister, Bheki Cele, for example, said the violence was a result of “criminality rather than xenophobia,” and that criminals were using intolerance as an “excuse.” | The most recent surge in violence, which began on Sunday, spurred anger both in and outside of South Africa, though some officials sought to portray it as the work of criminals rather than people angered by perceived outsiders. The police minister, Bheki Cele, for example, said the violence was a result of “criminality rather than xenophobia,” and that criminals were using intolerance as an “excuse.” |
| Video and still images from the riots showed streets covered in debris and burned tires, with people carrying refrigerators and vending machines out of shops. Law enforcement officers have responded with rubber bullets and tear gas. | Video and still images from the riots showed streets covered in debris and burned tires, with people carrying refrigerators and vending machines out of shops. Law enforcement officers have responded with rubber bullets and tear gas. |
| The deaths were confirmed by Col. Lungelo Dlamini, a spokesman for the police in Gauteng province, which includes Johannesburg. He would not identify the victims or their nationalities. | The deaths were confirmed by Col. Lungelo Dlamini, a spokesman for the police in Gauteng province, which includes Johannesburg. He would not identify the victims or their nationalities. |
| Online, tens of thousands of people on the continent have spoken out against the violence, using the hashtag #SayNoToXenophobia. | Online, tens of thousands of people on the continent have spoken out against the violence, using the hashtag #SayNoToXenophobia. |
| The African Union Commission also condemned the violence on Tuesday. Its chairman, Moussa Faki Mahamat, said the organization supported South African efforts to restore law and order. | The African Union Commission also condemned the violence on Tuesday. Its chairman, Moussa Faki Mahamat, said the organization supported South African efforts to restore law and order. |
| The riots come weeks before an October visit by President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria to South Africa, where he is set to meet with Mr. Ramaphosa to discuss rising tensions, including violence against foreigners. | The riots come weeks before an October visit by President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria to South Africa, where he is set to meet with Mr. Ramaphosa to discuss rising tensions, including violence against foreigners. |
| On Monday, Nigeria’s foreign affairs minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, wrote on Twitter that he had received the “sickening and depressing news of continued burning and looting of Nigerian shops” in South Africa. | On Monday, Nigeria’s foreign affairs minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, wrote on Twitter that he had received the “sickening and depressing news of continued burning and looting of Nigerian shops” in South Africa. |
| He blamed “mindless criminals” for the violence and said that the police in South Africa were failing to provide suitable protection. | He blamed “mindless criminals” for the violence and said that the police in South Africa were failing to provide suitable protection. |
| Standing in front of charred rubble, Lerato Peete, a South African woman, told a local newspaper, the Times, that she was angry at her fellow citizens for attacking their African “brothers and sisters.” | Standing in front of charred rubble, Lerato Peete, a South African woman, told a local newspaper, the Times, that she was angry at her fellow citizens for attacking their African “brothers and sisters.” |
| “I am so ashamed to be South African on this day,” she said. “How is it possible that a black person can be a foreigner in Africa? My mom was an activist, my father was an activist. I was born out of South Africa because we didn’t have a place to call our own.” | “I am so ashamed to be South African on this day,” she said. “How is it possible that a black person can be a foreigner in Africa? My mom was an activist, my father was an activist. I was born out of South Africa because we didn’t have a place to call our own.” |
| Abdallah Salajee, the owner of a car dealership, said he had lost property worth at least two million rand, about $130,000. Obinna Henry, a Nigerian mechanic, told The Times that he had lost “a safety guarantee in this country.” | Abdallah Salajee, the owner of a car dealership, said he had lost property worth at least two million rand, about $130,000. Obinna Henry, a Nigerian mechanic, told The Times that he had lost “a safety guarantee in this country.” |
| A recent report by the African Center for Migration & Society, which has monitored attacks on foreigners in South Africa since 1994, called xenophobic violence a “longstanding feature in post-Apartheid South Africa.” | A recent report by the African Center for Migration & Society, which has monitored attacks on foreigners in South Africa since 1994, called xenophobic violence a “longstanding feature in post-Apartheid South Africa.” |