Thousands of people marched through cities across South Africa on Tuesday to demand the departure of undocumented foreign nationals, culminating weeks of anti-immigration protests that have forced thousands of migrants to flee and left four people dead.

Police maintained a heavy presence during the nationwide demonstrations, which marked the climax of a campaign led by citizen vigilante groups that had set an unofficial June 30 deadline for undocumented foreigners to leave the country.

There were isolated incidents of looting, stone-throwing, and confrontations, including near Johannesburg, where security personnel escorted a small group of foreign nationals away from an angry crowd carrying large sticks.

In Johannesburg, South Africa’s financial capital, demonstrators marched through the city centre as most businesses remained closed, many workers stayed home, and transport hubs operated quietly. Protesters carried national flags and placards under the watch of police officers wearing riot gear and bulletproof vests.

In the south-eastern city of Durban, the heartland of the Zulu nation, demonstrators appeared in traditional warrior attire, carrying spears, whips, and shields, while some wore leopard skins.

One protester, Brightness Gumbi, 48, said she was frustrated that she could not afford commercial premises for her business while foreign nationals were able to operate shops.

“The illegal foreigners manage to pay it because they sell drugs to our people,” she told AFP. “I hope through these demonstrations our president will hear our cries and enforce stricter laws.”

In Cape Town, a major tourist destination, only about 100 people participated in a march through the city centre, where they passed a counter-protest against Afrophobia and xenophobia.

One of Africa’s wealthiest economies, South Africa continues to attract migrant labour while grappling with an unemployment rate above 30 per cent, high crime levels, and deteriorating public services in many communities.

Groups campaigning against undocumented migrants argue that they take jobs and public services away from South Africans. Analysts, however, say such claims unfairly scapegoat foreign nationals for government failures.

“South Africans have been replaced by illegal foreigners, increasing unemployment,” the leader of the anti-immigrant March and March movement, Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma, told supporters in Durban.

“We want mass deportation,” she said. “For the next six months, we want the government to get rid of the people who have not left.”

According to police, at least two Mozambicans, one Ethiopian, and one Malawian have been killed in the latest wave of anti-immigrant violence.

Several African governments, including Nigeria, Malawi, Ghana, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique, have organised voluntary repatriation flights and bus services for their citizens.

Although South Africa has experienced previous outbreaks of violence targeting undocumented foreign nationals, this is the first time several governments have simultaneously organised repatriation efforts.

Authorities said on Monday that more than 25,000 people had been processed for departure in recent weeks.

As protests unfolded across several cities, hundreds of migrants—mostly Malawians and Zimbabweans—gathered in Cape Town, Johannesburg, and other centres while awaiting assistance to return home.

Some said they had been evicted by landlords or dismissed by employers who feared penalties from government officials or attacks by vigilante groups.

“The people in South Africa, they don’t want us here. I’m scared,” a 23-year-old Zimbabwean woman, who requested anonymity, told AFP at a location where around 2,000 people were waiting to board buses.

Only a few dozen Malawians remained at a departure point in Durban after several thousand had been transported in recent days either back to Malawi or to a processing centre near the Zimbabwean border.

“I thought I could stay on, but neighbours warned us last night,” 32-year-old Adam John told AFP. “I felt that it is better to try and get home while I still can.”

Concerned about a repeat of the unrest five years ago, when about 350 people were killed during widespread looting and riots, the government deployed a large security contingent ahead of Tuesday’s demonstrations.

President Cyril Ramaphosa announced strengthened measures to combat illegal immigration and urged traditional leaders to use their influence to calm rising tensions.

With local government elections due in November, labour analyst Dale McKinley said the anti-migrant campaign had become “politically weaponised”.

Previous outbreaks of anti-foreigner violence in South Africa have proved deadly. In 2008, such attacks claimed 62 lives.