Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini has asked for an
end to violence after attacks against migrants in
South Africa.
The king told crowds of thousands at a stadium
in Durban that previous reports that he said
foreigners should "go back to their countries"
were distorted.
He has been accused of fuelling attacks in which
at least seven people died.
Hostile sections of the crowd sang songs calling
for immigrants to leave and booed a speaker
who said foreigners had the right to live in South
Africa.
In King Zwelithini's speech he called recent
violence shameful and vile. "We need to make
sure no more foreigners are attacked," he urged.
The Zulu king spoke to thousands at a
traditional gathering called an imbizo
While King Zwelithini stuck to a suit and tie,
some turned up in Zulu regalia
He said accusations against him of inciting
violence were incorrect because the country has
only been shown a portion of his speech.
"If it were true that I said foreigners must go,
this country would be up in flames," he added.
More than 300 people have been arrested.
Among the latest arrests were three men
detained in connection with the murder of a
Mozambican national in Alexandra, a township in
Johannesburg.
South African photojournalist James Oatway
witnessed Emmanuel Sithole being stabbed to
death in broad daylight and has spoken to the
BBC about what he saw:
Except for Mr Sithole, those killed have been in
Durban, the biggest city in South Africa's
KwaZulu-Natal province. They are an Ethiopian
man, a Mozambican man, a man believed to be
from Zimbabwe and three South Africans.
In other developments:
Students at the University of Johannesburg
have protested against the attacks
South African Football Association has
announced two friendly matches against
neighbouring countries to counteract the
hostility towards migrants
Zimbabwe's government has sent buses to
repatriate its citizens
Some South African accuse foreigners of
taking their jobs
In response, some foreign nationals, like these
Zimbabweans, have fled home
South African President Jacob Zuma has
condemned the attacks, saying they "go against
everything we believe in".
With the unemployment rate at 24%, many South
Africans accuse foreign nationals of taking jobs
from locals.
Official data suggests there are about two million
foreign nationals in South Africa, but some
estimates put the number much higher.source m.bbc.com/news/world-africa-32377743

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