Foreigners flee Wellington settlement after alleged xenophobic threats

A Gift of the Givers team has been sent to render humanitarian assistance to about 2,000 foreigners who fled their homes after alleged xenophobic threats in Wellington in the Western Cape. 

The organisation said the foreigners fled on Wednesday after a local resident and a foreigner were involved in a brawl and both died from their injuries.

Details about the incident were not immediately available from the police.  

It was believed the deaths have led to tensions in the area. 

“Women and children are accommodated at a local hall under police guard while the men are seeking refuge at the police station,” the organisation said. 

Gift of the Givers praised the police for their swift response in evacuating the foreigners in the OR informal settlement and preventing the potential looting and burning of foreign-owned shops.

TimesLIVE