Thursday, May 26, 2011

More than 50 Somali-owned shops in the South African city of Port Elizabeth have been attacked and looted by local residents

Police said that four shops had been burnt down and about 200 Somalis living near the shop premises had fled the unrest. A Somali community leader said that there was some resentment in the area about the success of Somali traders. At least 62 people died in attacks on foreigners that swept the country a few years ago. In total, 52 shops were looted and three were burnt down in the Motherwell area and three shops were looted and one torched in Kwadwesi, the police said. Abdirahman Yusuf Ahmed, a spokesman for the Somali community in the Eastern Cape, said one Somali trader was in hospital after he was tied up in his shop when it was set alight.

No comments: