Mob of About 50 Beats Foreign Man to Death in Durban Amid Migrant Tensions

A foreign national was beaten to death by a group of about 50 people on the edge of a march in the South African city of Durban on Thursday, police said. The attack adds to months of anti-immigrant tension in the country, where some protests have turned violent.

Police have not said what the march was about, and the victim's nationality has not been released, according to ABC News, the South China Morning Post and the BBC.

What police have said about the attack

According to police, two men from the group approached the victim as he stood at the side of a road in the city center. A larger group then assaulted him. The BBC reported that he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police described him as being in his 30s or early 40s. ABC News reported that officers were still trying to identify suspects. The BBC said an investigation into the killing had begun but that the motive had not been established. Provincial police spokesperson Robert Netshiunda told the BBC that police could not speculate on a motive and would share more information once it was verified.

Months of tension behind the killing

Durban, South Africa's third-largest city with nearly four million people, has become a hotspot for anti-immigrant sentiment this year, ABC News reported. In June, thousands of migrants, mainly from Malawi, gathered at a park in the city asking to be sent home. They said they were fleeing threats after a protest group demanded that undocumented migrants leave the country by June 30. The BBC identified that group as March and March.

Earlier this month, shops and cars were set on fire in Durban and in Soweto, near Johannesburg, according to the BBC. ABC News reported that the Soweto unrest followed a court ruling that made it easier for foreign citizens to claim asylum, which led many to apply at government buildings and prompted a reaction from locals. The South China Morning Post said looting and violence broke out in Durban after an anti-migrant march about two weeks ago.

South Africa has a long history of such violence. The BBC noted that in 2008, more than 60 people were killed and tens of thousands were displaced in attacks on foreign nationals.

Where governments and protest leaders disagree

Nigeria, Mozambique, Malawi and other countries have said some of their citizens were killed in xenophobic attacks linked to the protests, ABC News reported. South African authorities have disputed some of those claims, saying certain deaths were connected to criminal activity rather than the demonstrations.

The BBC reported that Nigeria accused South African authorities of responsibility for the deaths of two of its citizens. Ghana confirmed the death of Bashiru Isak, a father of three who was fatally shot in Cape Town during demonstrations targeting foreign nationals. His death led to a diplomatic row, with South Africa saying the scale of the violence had been exaggerated.

March and March leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma told the BBC she is not xenophobic. She said people who have lived alongside migrants for years are labeled xenophobic when they say the situation has become too much.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has denounced immigration-related violence but has also acknowledged years of failures in border control that let people enter and stay without documents, according to ABC News. The BBC reported that the government has urged protesters to act peacefully while accepting the need for immigration reforms.

Why it matters: safety, migration and regional relations

For foreign nationals living in South Africa, the killing underscores the risk of violence around demonstrations. ABC News reported that tens of thousands of migrants have left the country in recent months in one of its biggest mass departures in years. Many cite fear of violence, while the government says many were deported for lacking proper documents. The BBC said tens of thousands of foreign nationals have been deported or repatriated since the government began a crackdown earlier this year.

The unrest has also strained ties with other African countries. According to the BBC, Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Ghana took steps to repatriate their citizens over fears of further violence.

The tensions play out against hardship. The BBC said unemployment affects roughly a third of the workforce. ABC News pointed to overburdened public services. Migrants are often accused of taking jobs, adding to crime and straining services, though researchers told the BBC that such sweeping claims are not supported by evidence.

Official figures cited by ABC News put the number of foreign nationals in South Africa at around 2.4 million in a population of 62 million. Protesters say many undocumented people have not been counted.