Foreigners living in South Africa have fled for safety from a recent eruption of xenophobic violence in which at least five people have died and shops have been looted and torched. The latest outbreak of anti-immigrant violence in South Africa has been widely blamed on a speech last month by King Goodwill Zwelithini, traditional leader of the Zulu ethnic group, in which he linked foreigners to crime and said they must “take their bags and go”. The king has since claimed his words were misconstrued. Estimates of the number of foreign nationals in South Africa vary from two to five million, among a population of more than 51 million.
Following the news of the attacks, South African vehicles were pelted with stones in Mozambique on Friday and South African companies are reportedly being threatened with closure in Nigeria. Protests have been held at various South African embassies across the continent, and several South African musicians have been forced to cancel concerts abroad.
Have you or your family been affected by the violence? Or are you taking part in protests against the attacks in South Africa or other countries across the continent?
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