### What Happened
Accounts differ on the sequence and responsibility:
– March and March members said they went to clean the street (described in circulating posters as having turned into a dirty “refugee camp”) and alert authorities, but claimed migrants attacked them first (including with sticks). Leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma stated that about 10 of her members were injured, that one foreign national allegedly brandished or fired a firearm, and that police later used pepper spray on her group and ordered them away.
– A Congolese community leader (Bishop Raphael) and other migrant representatives said the marchers arrived armed with sticks, immediately attacked the camp, and that police used stun grenades (and in some reports rubber bullets/teargas) to disperse crowds, causing injuries. Raphael told AFP the march was “very violent,” that five Congolese nationals (including two children) were hurt, and that the group was not committing any crime by being there.
– Police said stones were thrown during the commotion; one thrown by a foreign national struck an officer, leading to that person’s arrest. They registered a case of assault on a police officer. Reports also note that marchers allegedly handled or moved migrants’ belongings, contributing to the physical confrontation. Police intervened with stun grenades and other measures to separate the sides.
Injury figures vary across sources but consistently indicate several people hurt on both sides, including children. One report noted a seven-year-old girl stepped on during dispersal, a woman fainting and taken by ambulance, two refugees with head injuries from assault, and a March and March supporter hit by a rubber bullet. At least some injured (including children in certain accounts) required hospital treatment. Two Congolese nationals were arrested in connection with the public violence/assault on the officer in some reports.
### Broader Context
This incident fits into a larger wave of anti-migrant (often framed as anti-undocumented or anti-illegal immigration) activism and associated violence that intensified in South Africa from around March 2026 onward. Groups including March and March, Operation Dudula and others organised protests and set a non-binding 30 June 2026 “deadline” for undocumented migrants to leave. That period saw nationwide marches (with heavy police and some military contingency deployments), sporadic looting of foreign-owned shops/homes, intimidation, displacement, and fatalities.
– At least four foreign nationals were killed in related violence according to South African police (some foreign governments and trackers cited higher numbers). Tens of thousands—estimates in reporting ranging into the low hundreds of thousands in cumulative tallies of those who left or were repatriated—fled or were assisted to return to countries including Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, the DRC and others. Many more were displaced internally or sought temporary shelter.
– Durban/KwaZulu-Natal has been a particular flashpoint, with large camps forming (e.g., Malawians at other sites earlier) and repeated tensions. Historical patterns of xenophobic/Afrophobic violence in South Africa (major outbreaks in 2008, 2015, 2019, 2021) provide background; economic pressures (high unemployment, inequality, competition for informal jobs and services), crime concerns, and political scapegoating are frequently cited by analysts and participants on different sides. Protesters often emphasise “illegal” immigration, jobs, and crime; critics and human rights groups highlight xenophobia, failures of state protection, and the targeting of documented refugees/asylum seekers alongside undocumented people.
– Government responses have included large security operations (hundreds of millions of rand allocated earlier in the year), arrests for specific crimes (looting, assault, etc.), statements condemning violence while acknowledging public frustrations over immigration enforcement, and some repatriation facilitation. Organisers of the broader campaign have denied responsibility for violence while continuing pressure (including weekly actions in some cases). Civil society groups monitoring the Che Guevara Road site have criticised inadequate protection, shelter and support for the displaced.
The 3 September clash underscores ongoing tensions months after the June deadline, particularly around visible migrant encampments in urban areas. Independent verification of exact casualty numbers, precise initiation of violence, and longer-term outcomes (further arrests, medical details, or follow-up actions) would require official police statements or additional local reporting, as accounts from involved parties diverge. South Africa’s deep structural challenges—unemployment, service delivery shortfalls, and migration management—continue to fuel these flashpoints.
