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Watch: Soweto, Durban unrest: police vow action after 24 cars torched and shops looted
Acting National Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Puleng Dimpane has warned that those responsible for violence and destruction during protests in Soweto and Durban will face arrest and prosecution.
The warning follows the torching of 24 vehicles, with 10 cars set alight in Soweto and 14 in Durban during protests outside Department of Home Affairs offices assisting asylum seekers.
WATCH | Acting national police commissioner Lieutenant General Puleng Dimpane says police will not tolerate lawlessness, the destruction of property or the torching of vehicles. Her remarks follow incidents in Soweto and Durban CBD, where vehicles were set alight during recent unrest.
SABC News (@SABCNews) October 8, 2026
Three foreign nationals have been arrested, while shops belonging to foreign nationals have also been looted amid the unrest.
Violence erupted in Soweto on Thursday, 8 October, when residents clashed with foreign nationals in Orlando West over a Home Affairs directive concerning asylum applications.
Several vehicles reportedly belonging to immigrants were torched, while goods belonging to some foreign shop owners were also set alight.
UPDATE | Gauteng SAPS spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi says one person has been arrested following a looting incident in Soweto. She has urged residents not to participate in criminal activity and says police will act decisively against those involved. https://t.co/oEmTGYQU8A
SABC News (@SABCNews) October 8, 2026
Johannesburg Metro Police Department spokesperson Xolani Fihla told SABC News that the violence reportedly escalated after shots were fired towards protesters.
‘From the reports that we are receiving on the ground, there were shots that were fired allegedly towards the protesters, and this led to the retaliation and them burning vehicles within the area,’ Fihla said.
He confirmed that no injuries had been reported at the time, adding that officers remained on the ground as tensions began to subside. Khumalo Road, near the Hector Pieterson Memorial and Museum, was closed to traffic following the clashes.
Chaos and violence has broken out in Durban, with rioters setting buildings and cars alight after foreign nationals shot and killed at least one South African.
There are reportedly 7 vehicles and 8 buildings on fire, with multiple shops being looted.
SAPS is apparently outnumbered.
Just another day in South Africa.
Pookie’s Polls & Opinions (@pookiepolls) October 8, 2026
The protests are linked to a Constitutional Court ruling in July concerning access to asylum application processes. The court ruled that refugees and asylum seekers must be given access to the process, regardless of whether they entered South Africa illegally.
Following the ruling, the Department of Home Affairs instructed refugee reception offices to accept people who intended to apply for asylum.
‘Every refugee reception office must, with immediate effect, receive every person who reports in person and indicates an intention to apply for asylum, and must assist that person to lodge an application,’ a Home Affairs notice stated.
Shops are being looted in Soweto, Johannesburg after clashes broke out between South African residents and foreign nationals. Tune in to #eNCA, on #DStv403. https://t.co/MmkQw2n3PL
eNCA (@eNCA) October 8, 2026
The notice further stated that no refugee reception office could enforce a policy or quota preventing people from accessing the asylum application process.
However, the ruling has fuelled tensions in communities opposed to the presence of undocumented foreign nationals, with protesters claiming that the directive allows them to remain in the country without restriction.
Violence was also reported in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, and Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape. In Durban, vehicles were torched during protests, while police in Gqeberha reportedly used stun grenades to disperse residents who were allegedly disrupting queues of foreign nationals at Home Affairs offices.
In response to the unrest, Dimpane condemned the violence and warned that police would take decisive action against those involved in criminal activities.
‘The South African Police Service will not tolerate lawlessness. We will not allow violence, the torching of vehicles, destruction of property or attacks on people to continue,’ she said.
As of right now Durban and Soweto foreign national shops have been looted. Some shops have now been torched in Durban.
Neville_ (@nevillembamayi) October 8, 2026
Dimpane said police would pursue those responsible for the destruction and ensure that offenders were held accountable.
‘Those behind the torching of vehicles will be pursued. Those responsible for acts of violence and destruction will be identified, investigated and, where sufficient evidence exists, arrested and brought to book,’ she said.
She stressed that the right to protest did not give anyone permission to commit criminal offences.
‘The right to raise concerns and to protest does not give anyone the right to commit crime. Legitimate grievances must be pursued through lawful and constitutional processes,’ Dimpane said.
The acting national commissioner added that anyone who broke the law would face consequences.
‘Anyone who chooses to break the law will be dealt with decisively, without fear or favour,’ she said.
Authorities have urged protesters to express their grievances through lawful means as police continue to respond to the unrest.
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