South African police deployed stun grenades and rubber bullets on Wednesday against protesting migrants outside a processing center in Durban.
The violence erupted near a local community hall where thousands of foreign nationals are currently facing formal government deportation.
Aggrieved protesters threw rocks, sticks, and logs into the streets, prompting a forceful tactical response from local law enforcement units.
Tensions surrounding immigration are surging across South Africa following a recent wave of anti-migrant marches and localized vigilante attacks.
The vast majority of those gathered are Malawian nationals who initially sought voluntary repatriation back to their home country.
The Premier of KwaZulu-Natal Province stated that nearly 10,000 Malawians had been camping in a nearby park waiting for buses.
Administrative delays in the repatriation timeline prompted the South African Ministry of Home Affairs to establish an on-site immigration court.
Authorities subsequently shifted the operation from voluntary return to rigorous, formal deportation procedures, sparking immediate anger among the stranded crowds.
This volatile confrontation underscores a deepening humanitarian crisis within Africa’s wealthiest nation as economic anxiety drives widespread anti-foreigner sentiment.
The smoke of stun grenades has cleared, but the future remains deeply uncertain for thousands of displaced families awaiting expulsion.