Clashes between South African and foreign nationals in Soweto have led to nine vehicles being set on fire JOHANNESBURG -- At least 24 vehicles were burned and shops looted as protests over a court ruling easing access to asylum turned violent in two South African cities on Thursday. Acting national police commissioner Lt. Puleng Dimpane said 10 vehicles were torched in Johannesburg’s Soweto township and 14 in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal province, where three people were arrested.
Protests in Soweto and Durban opposed the Constitutional Court’s decision to remove procedural barriers to seeking asylum. They followed months of anti-immigrant tensions, with demonstrators demanding the deportation of foreigners living in South Africa illegally. The Soweto violence, which left several burned-out cars lining the streets, erupted near a Home Affairs office in Orlando West, according to metro police spokesperson Xolani Fihla.
No injuries were reported, and officers were checking whether additional vehicles had been burned. Fihla said police received reports of shots fired toward protesters, which triggered retaliatory vehicle burnings. He did not identify who allegedly fired or who owned the vehicles.
Community leader Tshepo Mposula said the demonstration began peacefully outside Home Affairs before residents moved to shut foreign-owned convenience stores. He alleged that foreign nationals fired shots, angering protesters who then set vehicles alight. This was supposed to be a peaceful demonstration,” he said.
Fihla said the violence had subsided, although tensions remained high. Officers were still deployed, and roads remained closed. He acknowledged that officers initially monitoring the march lacked specialized public-order training and equipment.
In the eastern coastal city of Durban, where looting of shops owned by foreign nationals was reported by the state broadcaster, SABC, riot police were deployed to the city center. Smoke billowed over parts of downtown Durban as firefighters battled blazes. KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Col.
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