An injured Somali shopkeeper in Soweto. South African is home to many immigrants from the rest of the continent.
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Three people have been killed in South Africa during violence on Wednesday targeting foreign-owned businesses in Soweto, police say.
Image copyrightAFPImage captionProtests broke out after shopkeepers were accused of selling out-of-date and counterfeit produce, local reports say. It is thought the violence escalated after a Somali shopkeeper shot dead a teenager who allegedly tried to rob his store.Image copyrightAFPImage captionForeign-owned shops were looted, including this one run by an Ethiopian. Some shopkeepers are reported to have fled the area carrying the goods they managed to salvage.Image copyrightAFPImage captionPolice have arrested 27 people in connection with the looting and violence. This has reminded many in South Africa of the gruesome attacks of May 2008, reports the BBC's Pumza Fihlani. At that time 62 people died, 41 were foreigners and 21 were South Africans.Image copyrightAFPImage captionOfficers are investigating who fired the fatal shots in the area and say that more arrests are expected.Image copyrightAFPImage captionSecurity has been stepped up following the protests and violence and shopkeepers were told to temporarily close their businesses.Image copyrightAFPImage captionSome of the shopkeepers fear that there could be further violence. "There is no government here. If there was a government here, they would control these things," one is quoted as saying.Image copyrightAFPImage captionThere are lingering fears that much like in 2008, the violence could spread to other parts of the country, our correspondent says.Image copyrightAFPImage captionThe local authorities said they were looking into the allegations that the shops were selling out-of-date and counterfeit goods.