IN SHORT: A video claiming to show "undocumented foreign nationals" clashing with South African police on 30 June 2026 was actually filmed earlier in the month. It does not show migrants "refusing to leave" but a confrontation between police and Malawian migrants waiting for repatriation.
Large anti-immigrant protests took place across South Africa on 30 June 2026 after anti-migrant groups designated the date a "deadline" for undocumented migrants to leave South Africa.
This was not an official government deadline with legal ramifications, but as the day approached, South Africa saw increasingly frequent xenophobic protests, violence targeting migrants, and migration-related false information.
In this context, a video has been circulated widely with the claim that it shows "undocumented foreign nationals" clashing with South African police on 30 June. Some sharing the video have claimed that the confrontation started specifically because some of these foreigners were not "willing to leave" South Africa.
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Africa Check has fact-checked many false claims in the days leading up to and during the 30 June protests. One of these was the video of police clashing with a large group of supposed migrants "refusing to leave". But is this the full story behind this video?
Malawian migrants waiting for repatriation at temporary camp
From other footage of the incident, we recognised that the video was filmed in the neighbourhood of Sherwood in Durban - a distinctive local mosque can be seen in the background of the video and confirmed this.
In June, the area surrounding a community hall in Sherwood became a makeshift camp for Malawians waiting to be repatriated ahead of planned 30 June protests. (Some versions of the video posted online on 18 June incorrectly claimed that the video showed immigrants from Nigeria clashing with anti-migrant group March and March.)
The Malawian government has made efforts to repatriate its citizens living in South Africa to protect them from potential xenophobic violence. But temporary repatriation facilities have become overwhelmed and overcrowded.
Clashes broke out at the Sherwood site, though the reason why is not entirely clear. Some news outlets have reported that it was because of police trying to move people to another temporary camp to ease overcrowding. Other media reported the unrest was because of police transporting migrants to court as part of the repatriation process.
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News24 quoted two migrants as saying that they did not want to "waste time" or be moved around. One person said: "We do not want to go to these waiting camps that they want to send us. We want to remain together here until they bring those buses."
The confrontation escalated on the morning of 17 June as police fired rubber bullets and tear gas, and migrants allegedly threw stones and other objects. However, news reports from later the same day said that calm had been restored, long before 30 June.
The video does not show migrants "refusing" to leave South Africa, and was not filmed on 30 June.
