from RUSSELL ADADEVOH in Accra & SAVIOUS KWINIKA in Johannesburg
Ghana Bureau
ACCRA, (CAJ News) – GHANAIAN President John Dramani Mahama and his Nigerian counterpart, Bola Tinubu, have successfully pressed for the African Union (AU) to formally consider South Africa’s ongoing xenophobic violence at its next summit, amid mounting concern over attacks on foreign nationals.
The violence, driven by the vigilante group March and March and reportedly supported by members of the Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) opposition party, has drawn widespread condemnation across the continent.
President Mahama announced the development after meeting African Union Commission (AUC) Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf during the AU Extraordinary Summit in Accra, Ghana, on Thursday.
“During bilateral talks on the sidelines of the AU Extraordinary Summit in Accra, I reiterated Ghana’s call for the African Union to formally address the escalating xenophobic attacks on foreign nationals in South Africa,” Mahama wrote on social media.
He welcomed Youssouf’s response, saying: “I am pleased that AU Commission Chairman Mahmoud Ali Youssouf has acknowledged the urgent need to table this matter for discussion at the next AU Summit.”
Mahama also met South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola, who attended the summit as President Cyril Ramaphosa’s envoy.
Following the meeting, Mahama said Ghana remained deeply troubled by attacks on African migrants and the destruction of businesses owned by foreign nationals.
“I made Ghana’s position clear to the envoy (Ronald Lamola). We do not harbour ill will towards South Africa. However, we remain deeply concerned about the attacks and the significant financial losses suffered by people from various countries across the continent,” Mahama said.
He argued that the violence undermined African unity and the continent’s integration agenda.
“This undermines the very spirit of African solidarity and our collective efforts towards continental integration,” he added.
Mahama rejected any suggestion that the issue should be ignored, insisting that lasting solutions required frank engagement.
“That is why Ghana officially wrote to the AU Commission requesting that this issue be placed on the agenda for the next summit. Providing South Africa with a formal and constructive platform allows the country to present its perspective while enabling member states to work together towards a lasting solution.”
He urged all 55 AU member states to strengthen continental solidarity and cooperation.
“Ghana remains committed to working with all AU member states to find lasting solutions that protect the dignity, safety and investments of every African, wherever they live on our continent,” he said.
Responding to Ghana’s concerns, Youssouf condemned the attacks in the strongest terms, describing them as carrying a “terrible human cost”.
The AU boss confirmed that the matter would be placed before the AU’s next summit for discussion.
According to Youssouf, although the South African Government has publicly condemned xenophobic and Afrophobic attacks, perpetrators have often continued their actions with little meaningful intervention.
He further alleged that, in some instances, uniformed security personnel had failed to intervene while foreign nationals were harassed.
Youssouf made the remarks during his visit to Ghana, where citizens have petitioned the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate attacks against African migrants living in South Africa.
The controversy has intensified following reports that members of South Africa’s third-largest opposition party, uMkhonto weSizwe (MK), toured communities urging African migrants to leave the country, irrespective of their immigration status.
Meanwhile, veteran Zimbabwean journalist and pan-African commentator Hopewell Chin’ono has urged South Africans to distinguish between illegal immigration and xenophobia, arguing that both are genuine but separate challenges requiring lawful and effective responses.
“There is a genuine illegal immigration problem in South Africa. There is also a genuine problem of xenophobia and Afrophobia. These are two distinct problems, and both require urgent, lawful and effective solutions,” Chin’ono said.
He also alleged that Israel has sought to exploit South Africa’s internal tensions following Pretoria’s decision to institute legal proceedings against Israel before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), while also supporting accountability efforts before the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the conflict in Gaza.
Israel rejects allegations of genocide and disputes the claims made against it.
According to Chin’ono, South Africa’s legal action has intensified geopolitical tensions.
“There is also a contest between South Africa and Israel. That contest began when South Africa took Israel to the International Court of Justice over the Gaza massacres and genocide. Israel is fighting back,” he said.
Chin’ono further alleged that Israel was exploiting genuine concerns surrounding illegal immigration, xenophobia and Afrophobia to advance its own strategic interests against the South African Government.
He argued that domestic challenges, regional politics and international geopolitics should not be viewed separately.
“Not everyone has the capacity to see how domestic realities, regional politics and international geopolitics intersect. Those who do have that capacity have a responsibility to recognise what is unfolding and to speak about it,” Chin’ono said.
He stressed that acknowledging possible external influence did not diminish South Africa’s responsibility for addressing its own internal challenges.
“South Africa’s problems with illegal immigration, xenophobia and Afrophobia are real and home-grown. However, it would be naïve to assume that powerful foreign interests would not seek to exploit those genuine problems in pursuit of their own strategic objectives,” he said.
Chin’ono concluded that understanding the crisis required examining the connections between domestic developments, diplomatic disputes and wider geopolitical interests rather than viewing individual events in isolation.
South Africa has experienced repeated outbreaks of xenophobic violence over nearly two decades.
In 2008, at least 63 African migrants were killed and more than 300,000 people displaced during one of the country’s deadliest episodes of anti-foreigner violence.
Further unrest erupted in 2022, particularly in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, where widespread looting affected businesses owned by both foreign nationals and South Africans.
Several people were killed or injured, while many others were displaced.
Fresh violence during 2026 has resulted in further deaths, injuries, displacement and the destruction of businesses owned by African migrants.
According to reports, the attacks were continuing as of 23 July 2026, fuelling renewed calls for coordinated continental action to address xenophobia and protect the rights, safety and livelihoods of all Africans living across the continent.
– CAJ News