Xenophobia violence flares in Alexandra

A man was shot dead and another injured when violence flared up in Alexandra on Monday evening, bringing the death toll in suspected xenophobic attacks to three, police said on Tuesday.

Constable Neria Malefetse said a total of 39 people were arrested in the Johannesburg township on Monday evening.

“A man was shot and killed and one was injured,” she said, adding that both victims were South African.

Another two people were killed on Sunday night—one of them also South African—and dozens were injured when an angry mob took to the streets and targeted foreigners, who residents say are not welcome here.

The public-order police unit has been deployed to monitor the situation, which had quieted down by Tuesday morning.

“The police have managed to calm the situation down,” Malefetse said.—Sapa