Harare (New Ziana) – The Zimbabwe government is working on repatriating over 150 nationals who have volunteered to return home after being affected by the xenophobic attacks in South Africa, a Cabinet Minister said on Tuesday.

Mobs of mainly young South Africans have been attacking and looting shops and businesses owned by foreign African migrants in Johannesburg and other cities, resulting in deaths and injury to scores of people.

The attacks have drawn widespread criticism from across Africa, and led to retaliation against South African businesses in Nigeria and Mozambique.

Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said government will assist to repatriate affected Zimbabweans who wanted to come back home.

“A total of 171 Zimbabwean nationals had been affected with two of them having lost their lives,” she said during a post Cabinet briefing.

“Government is deeply saddened by this occurrence and is currently in the process of making arrangements to urgently repatriate the affected citizens back home.”

Mutsvangwa said government was also engaging some international organisations in South Africa to support the affected citizens.

“Government continues to monitor the situation with a view to escalating the evacuation exercise should the situation deteriorate further.”

The spate of violence, a recurrence of previous attacks, broke out in suburbs south of Johannesburg three weeks ago and quickly spread to other cities.
New Ziana