Deadly Anti-Migrant Violence Sweeps South Africa as Thousands Flee Ahead of a June 30 Deadline

A wave of xenophobic violence is sweeping South Africa, with foreign-owned businesses looted, African migrants driven from their homes and several people killed, as a vigilante movement presses undocumented immigrants to leave the country by June 30.

"They can kill you," one African migrant told NPR, capturing the fear gripping immigrant communities as attacks intensify across major cities. At least five Mozambicans have been killed in the coastal town of Mossel Bay, and police are investigating a string of murders linked to the unrest. Several African governments have begun sending aircraft to repatriate their nationals, who are fleeing assaults, vandalism and threats by the thousands.

The humanitarian toll is mounting fastest in Durban, the port city where more than 3,000 Malawians, including hundreds of children, are sheltering in an open field after abandoning their homes. Over the past weekend, more than 150 Malawians were bussed out of Western Cape province, and scores of Malawians, Mozambicans, Zimbabweans, Nigerians and other African nationals have reported being attacked and having their shops destroyed.

The violence has been driven by a citizen-led campaign that uses the language of law and order to demand stricter immigration enforcement. The movement, which organized demonstrations in Pretoria, Johannesburg and Durban during April and May, has issued an ultimatum giving all undocumented immigrants until June 30 to leave, raising fears that the bloodshed could escalate as the deadline nears. Police have tightened security around flashpoints, but rights groups say the response has been slow and uneven.

South Africa has long been a magnet for migrant labor from across the continent, and it has an equally long and grim history of anti-foreigner violence, periodically erupting amid economic distress. With unemployment running above 30 percent, agitators have blamed migrants for crime and for taking jobs, accusations that human rights organizations say have repeatedly fueled deadly attacks. Human Rights Watch has warned of a new wave of xenophobic violence, and aid workers fear the displacement in Durban and elsewhere is a preview of worse to come if the campaign's deadline passes without a forceful government response.